Spirit of the Triage
by emily4498
Summary: I expected to wake up in one of three places: the hospital, heaven, or hell. Imagine my surprise when I found myself slowly spinning on playground swings, seconds before the massacre of Uzushiogakure was to take place. A young Kushina, who is apparently my little sister, stared at me from across the playground. Male OC
1. Chapter 1 - Part 1

_Spirit of the Triage by emily4498_

As a kid, I always thought that being a hero would be cool, right? Risking my life, saving the day, the acclaim, and access to whatever the hell I wanted through obsessive fans. I'd settle for being the villain, a smart one, and take the infamy, fear of my name, and the other cool things associated with it, minus the indecent defeat at the hands of a naïve goody-goody. I thought it would be cool, I had fantasies about saving the day, or ruining it, depending on my mood, but it was never serious. I had a habit of chickening out when faced with any serious choices.

" _Remember, if the time should come when you have to make a choice between what is right and what is easy, remember what happened to a boy who was good, and kind, and brave…_ "

Sure, I was just a little pipsqueak when I read that specific series, but the story has absolutely nothing to do with this, just the words. I was walking along, minding my own business in the hustle and bustle of the big city. I think I was going to get my driver's license renewed, but I might have been filing my taxes, either way it didn't matter. I was minding my own business when I saw a kid getting shaken down by some mugger, barely out of sight of anyone except those directly in front of the alley. It seemed horribly cliché, but I stopped and those words ran through my head. My cell phone was in my hand, but I realized that the cops would take too long to arrive. I could have called them anyways, crime was their problem, not mine, but I knew that would have just been the easy way out. I took a picture of the mugger and stepped into the alley. I wasn't being brave, or even all that stupid. The mugger couldn't have been more than high school age, and the kid was a middle schooler at best, so it wasn't much more than breaking up a schoolyard fight. Little old lady teachers could do it, so I, a full-grown man, could stop it without much of a problem, right?

Since I felt like I was walking on clichés already, I decided to keep hitting it on the nose. "You know, kid, you really should pick on someone your own size."

"Stay out of this old guy!"

That was a bit offensive. I wasn't even thirty yet, for heaven's sake! I grabbed the teen's wrist. "Let the little one go," I ordered.

The teen released the kid, who ran like the hounds of hell nipped at his heels.

I let go and was about to walk away when I heard the distinctive click of a gun behind me. Almost at once, I heard the bang, felt a sharp pain in the back of my skull, which raced through my entire scalp.

My thoughts were along the lines of 'um, really, asshole?' The situation was over and I still get shot for my troubles.

(-_-)

I expected to wake up in one of three places: the hospital (which I was hoping for), heaven (which I wouldn't mind the slightest), or hell (which I sincerely hoped wasn't an option).

Imagine my surprise when I found myself slowly spinning on playground swings watching a handful of orphaned redheads run around a merry-go-round. And my front four teeth missing. I used up quite a bit of my cool when I recognized one of them as Uzumaki Kushina from a manga, Naruto, I read in high school. I had about twenty percent of my cool remaining when the kids started screaming in terror and my swing stopped spinning as I face the opposite direction: the village we were so obviously a part of being attacked by blurs and a heavy mist descending over everything. I knew what was going on. I didn't remember the entire story, but key points stood out to me and I had always been especially interested in the time before the beginning of canon.

An adult ran towards us, picking up a child and attempting to flee, but was cut down, along with the little boy.

I was very happy that what was 'right' and what was 'easy' fit together at that moment. This was not something I could fight and those damn kids didn't deserve to be cut down, nor did an attacking shinobi deserve to have the slaughter of orphans on their conscience. I spun and dashed towards the group of kids faster than I had ever run before, grabbed the first two arms I reached and yanked the terrified children towards the wild trees scarred and gnarled by seawater with Kushina and another boy each dragging another kid behind them. Two more kids caught on and raced after us while the others ran towards the village, calling for the orphanage caretakers. I led the group through the woods and to the docks where someone left boats painted with seals. I don't know how I knew they were there, I just did.

I shoved my two kids into the boat, followed by Kushina and the little girl she grabbed. The last four leaped in of their own accord while I yanked the ropes free from the dock, like any good little boy scout from a port city knew how, threw them into the boat, then shoved it away from the dock. When it was far enough away, I took a running leap off the dock, just as a Kiri shinobi appeared in the tree line. He ran forward and nearly caught my shoe, but I made it to the boat, if barely, with my knees cracking painfully against the side and sure I broke the wrist of the poor kid I landed on. The boat lurched about fifteen yards further into the strait, totaling twenty or so yards away from the deck. I should not have been able to make a five- _yard_ jump, I certainly didn't question it until I was sure I was nice and safe.

The shinobi grinned and stepped out onto the water to follow, throwing a brace of kunai into the boat. Kushina scrambled up to shout, "I am Uzumaki Kushina and you will leave us _alone_!" She held up her hands in a familiar cross sign while an internal chant of 'get your scrawny, bony knees out of my spine' began in my head. Mist rose and the water swirled angrily around the boat, destroying the footing of the shinobi and dragging him beneath the water where he was dashed against the dock, his neck very obviously broken. Kushina collapsed and I barely managed to roll beneath her so she fell inside the boat instead of overboard. Everything went silent, even the poor girl whose arm I broke.

I, for one, was extremely proud of myself for saving eight kids, all under the age of six, from the massacre of Uzushiogakure, when formerly, only Kushina survived. Until I saw the state we were in.

(-_-)

I know I can never be a true hero and I will never try and lay claim to that title. I was too selfish. If I hadn't felt that there would be future strength in numbers, I would have just fled. Now, since there wasn't any active threat, I could spend a minute or so bemoaning the fact I had red hair that was a bit long for any self-respecting boy and was currently seven, which some niggling thing in the back of my head proudly informed me. Puberty had been bad the first time, with acne and a bit of a fanaticism for stories over playing video games like the 'cool' kids. The story fanaticism never faded. I hadn't been great at sports, overly smart, or hard working so I never stood out, except when less-sociable me was chosen for the brunt of immature jokes. Not that I paid enough attention to the other kids to care. Still, even though my first go-around hadn't been all that bad, I was not looking forward to another.

Even so, from the way six children barely old enough for school were looking at me (Kushina was out for the count and the girl with the broken arm was hunched over in pain and struggling not to make any noise) I had to take the lead. My adult thought process immediately broke down the situation into smaller, manageable tasks. The entire group was injured in some way, many of the injuries could become much more severe if left untreated for much longer, so I tackled that first, careful to keep my voice down.

"Everyone sit with your backs to the edge of the boat, but one at a time and go where I tell you." It was difficult to speak without my front teeth, but I managed. The boat was about the size of a large canoe and I was extremely thankful that orphans were generally undersized as a rule so there was just barely enough room for us to move without capsizing the boat. I directed three kids to press their backs against each side of the boat and dragged the unconscious Kushina into one of the places while commissioning the strongest and oldest-looking boy to help me with the girl with the broken arm. The boy I chose was also the only older kid not injured by the kunai thrown. I felt a bit sick as the blood in the bottom of the canoe was a bit more than just smears. I didn't have a lot of time.

I grabbed one of the kunai embedded in the wood and pulled the ribbon out of a little girl's hair, cut it in half, and tied the kunai around the broken arm as a makeshift brace, then told the girl to hold her arm against her chest, quickly replacing her with another boy who had a kunai through his upper arm and lodged in his rib. The boy commissioned to help me and a second volunteer held the whimpering kid down while I yanked the blade out. They kept the pressure on the wounds while I stripped off my shirt and cut it into strips, swallowing down the bile at being forced to play ER doctor, the whole time chewing on my tongue in the empty space in the front of my mouth. I knew the basics of first aid; I did a brief stint as a lifeguard in high school, but those classes did absolutely nothing for preparing me for taking care of eight redheaded kids stranded on the water that I was certain contained deadly whirlpools that would shake us to death. It took two more volunteered shirts before the wounds were bandaged well enough to stop us from bleeding out. I then stood at the rudder, which I found quite odd for such a small boat, and kept us pointed in the direction towards the mainland, searching for help of any kind, while the others huddled against the sided of the boat.

Somehow, I never needed to say much. It only took a few motions, maybe a word or two to direct the frightened kids around. The attack had started in the morning and by the time everything was sorted out, it was long past noon. I feared the cold that would accompany the night with wind that could kill us without even a blanket to cover. It wasn't a particularly cold day, with the clear skies and sun, but the night could be dangerous. I prayed to whatever god in charge of this universe that someone would chance across us, or that the other side of the strait would appear in sight. Kushina still hadn't woken and I hoped she would have an answer when she did.

(-_-)

It was almost suppertime and I was starting to second-guess my chosen method of death. The shock was beginning to wear off and the younger kids had begun to whimper in pain, fear, and cold while the blood had long since soaked into the wood. I felt sick from exposure to the sun and all of us were dehydrated. The smallest of girls had fallen unconscious. Our short arms couldn't even reach the seawater to pull that in to drink. Thankfully, Kushina was showing signs of waking.

It was nighttime when she finally regained consciousness and the cold had begun to set in. I could feel the first tremors setting into my small, half-clothed body, which didn't have the immunity to the cold my adult body had built up. "Do you have any ideas to get us to safety, Kushina?" I asked once she was alert enough to respond. She picked herself up and stumbled over to me. For the second time, I had to stop her from going overboard on accident. She leaned heavily on me, while I leaned heavily on the aft of the boat, and inspected the seals on the rudder handle.

"This one. Put chakra into that seal, it won't take much, and it will send out a distress signal to any nearby, local, civilian vessels, but it's too late for any of them to get it. That seal there will take you to the nearest mainland port so we can tell someone what happened and get help, but I can't do it, I don't have enough left."

"Um, can anyone else use chakra?" I asked hopefully.

The kids shook their head.

"Alright. We'll start there. Um, what do I have to do?"

It was sitting on the bottom of a blood-stained boat, in the middle of a strait, terrified of freezing to death, with a bunch of kids, my hair itching my face, and taught by a six-year-old Fūinjutsu prodigy that I learned to access chakra and sealed my fate as a shinobi of the new world I found myself in. I figured it was only almost as frightening and hellish as hell itself. On the bright side, I had a good story I could make, rather than just passively absorb the work of others for once.

(-_-)

If the moon followed the same time pattern as the sun (I wasn't sure because I had never needed the sky to tell me the time, nor was I interested), we reached the docks around midnight. Unfortunately for me and Kushina, the only ones of the group brave enough to speak to non-Uzumaki shinobi, it was at the exact same time as the Konoha shinobi and poor us were snatched out of our boat and dragged into an abandoned shack to be interrogated by the leader of the Konoha team sent to aid Uzushiogakure. One of the shinobi I recognized immediately. Hatake Sakumo, the White Fang, though he looked much, much younger than I remembered.

"Here's the deal, kids. I know you're from Uzu and my team and I are headed there now to help your families, but we need as much information as you can remember. Can you tell me anything?"

Everyone immediately looked to me and a few pointed as well.

"My brother Kichiro can tell you better than anyone what happened. He's really smart and strong! He saved us!" Kushina said and the other kids agreed.

The brother part caught me by surprise and I hoped I regained the memories of this Kichiro kid because I most certainly didn't want to be accused of being an infiltrator. Maybe I could arrange a convenient knock on the head and 'forget' everything as soon as the trauma died down. For now, though, I had to do my best to make sure that Hatake Sakumo survived whatever his mission was, but I at least had the tact to not want to tell the shinobi about the attack in front of a group of children.

Sakumo picked up on my uneasiness and led me out of the sheltered shack, carefully wrapping a warm blanket around me so I didn't freeze in the night air. "Tell me everything, kid." I automatically felt my back straighten as we stopped behind a nearby house.

"Except for one or two who might have slipped through the cracks, the entire population is dead," I started out bluntly. There was no reason to mince my words, the man was a shinobi, he could take it. "Um, they used a mist Jutsu to confuse everyone and obscure vision, simultaneously reducing the effectiveness of traps. The village never stood a chance. We escaped because we were at an orphanage near the strait. None of us have any family left to lose. We were all orphaned before the attack."

It was all starting to sink in for real now. I had just saved eight other kids from certain death when I remembered the actual story of this world well enough that only Kushina should have survived. I had _saved_ eight kids. Those eight kids now owed their lives to me and I was now responsible for them. I knew I couldn't do it. I knew I was going to let them down simply because I could barely take care of myself as an adult. How the hell was seven-year-old me in a world I barely remembered from my childhood supposed to do anything right?

"Hey! Stay with me, Kichiro, I still need you to tell me how you got out."

I shamefully scrubbed at my eyes. "We were on the playground when the mist appeared. I grabbed who I could and ran to the boats. We all jumped in but someone tried to chase us. Kushina, um, killed them with some Jutsu and eventually we made it here. The shinobi had a Kiri forehead protector."

"What did Kushina's jutsu look like?" Sakumo asked, grabbing my arm to stop me from tipping over.

"I-it made a giant, um, whirlpool around us that dashed him against the dock."

"You've done well, Kichiro, don't let anything lead you to think any differently."

"I didn't want to do anything!" I stamped my foot with an immaturity that would have horrified me if I wasn't upset over the responsibility that I had hung about my own neck.

"Kichiro, listen to me," the Hatake ordered and put both hands on my shoulders. "Just because you saved those kids' lives, you're not responsible for them. How old are you? Six? Seven? You're not expected in any way to take care of yourself, much less anyone else, alright?" I looked up at him wishing I was actually a kid and not able to see the way adults use their 'adult power' to force kids into their point of view. "You shouldn't feel that way, kid, alright?"

I couldn't believe it. How the hell could I just change my entire point of view because the man just said so. The Hatake released me and I couldn't help myself. I punched the man in the face. Maybe it was the fact that I was smaller than his leg and he straight-up did not expect me to try anything like that. Or, maybe it was the fact that I had a decent mask for my anger and he was not expecting me to be able to hide them as well as I did. It surprised me as much as him that the strike actually connected and had the strength to snap his head to the side. Given, I had channeled chakra to reinforce my bones and muscles, but I still surprised myself. I didn't miss how he had drawn his tantō and channeled chakra into the blade before he managed to stop himself when I took a step back and cringed. Well, at least I'd have the bragging rights that I punched the White Fang.

He rubbed his jaw, studying me carefully. "You're right, kid. You're not a shinobi yet so I can't ask you to turn off your thoughts and feelings at will. I'll tell you this, though. You're a good person and a leader whether you want to be or not. You're the kind of person I want watching my back because I know you'll do your job whether you want to or not. Who knows, one day you might just be on my team."

I stood there gaping at him. In his own roundabout way, he had offered me a place on his team.

"Now, kid, you may still have all that adrenaline pumping through your body, but that gash on your head looks pretty nasty and I think our dear medic has finished up with your friends."

"They're not my friends," I corrected him. "I don't even know their names. Except for Kushina."

He ignored me and took my hand to lead me back to the others. While we walked, I prodded at the gash in my right temple and noticed that the blood had coated the whole side of my head and down over my shoulder. Well, I guess that could cover the memory loss if need be, considering I didn't even remember hitting my head, which was probably a bad thing. Walking into the little shack they had contained the kids in was a second punch to the gut. Standing up from where she knelt beside the youngest kid to survive, who was nearly five, was Tsunade. I probably shouldn't have been surprised. It was the village of her extended family that had been attacked and she had to have been a damn good medic for her age to be sent to help. Medicine, without a formal, standardized education program in place, had to be a lifelong profession.

I shied away as she turned to me and pressed her palm against the gash on my head. I found it hard to trust someone I knew to be a drunk, at least in the future.

"Oh stop your flinching, kid, I know exactly what I'm doing and I promise not to hurt you." With quick, practiced movements, she ran her hands across the front of my chest and down my arms, stopping to heal the damage to my wrist where I had caught myself in the boat, shaking her head at something while she turned me around and ran a hand down my back then down the sides of both legs, healing the damage to my knees from jerking backwards over the edge of the boat. "Right, kid, I'm surprised you were able to function at all. Your skull had a depression fracture and you had a pretty severe concussion. Don't get too frustrated if you have trouble making your body work like you feel it should be working. Also, I can't tell for certain because I'm not a Yamanaka, but I think you've lost a lot of your memories. If you were older, it wouldn't be as much of a problem, but for now, you have a nearly clean slate. Since I don't know your baseline, I have no idea how severe the damage is and I won't dare try and repair it here without getting a second opinion on the matter. For now, we're going to get all of you to Konoha and make sure you're safe."

"Wait!" Kushina cried out. "Does that mean Nii-san doesn't remember me?"

Tsunade looked at me for the answer.

I shook my head, a bit stunned at the fact I was the brother to a future Jinchuuriki and the lynchpin of the entire story, and she wasn't just messing around, not that I thought she would mess around in a situation like this. Kushina wrapped her arms around me.

"It's alright. I'll tell you everything about you so you don't have to not-remember anymore."

I nodded, slightly freaked out as she squirmed into the blanket beside me.

The adults left and the others began to doze off while Kushina and I sat against the door.

"The boy confirmed that Kiri shinobi were attacking the village and he claims that it's already been ransacked. We can leave someone here to guard the kids and go on, or we can rush back to the village and get a larger force to back us up when searching for survivors." Sakumo laid out while I felt the wall shift slightly as someone leaned against it. Kushina clung to me and I found myself more than a little uncomfortable at the proximity.

"If it is Kiri, we're in no shape to fight. Only Tsunade has a proper Earth affinity." A strange spoke up.

"So we're just abandoning them?" Tsunade demanded.

"There are nine kids in there we're saving, Tsunade. Are you going to risk their lives by getting in over our heads?" A second stranger spoke up.

"She has a point." A third stranger cut in. The voice sent chills down my back. "Those kids may be Uzumaki, their resilience and longevity will be beneficial, but it seems that except for the girl, Kushina, they know almost nothing of their clan heritage, considering they're orphans. Only her and the boy, Kichiro, appear to have any talent for the shinobi arts. Tsunade looked at their chakra networks and none of the others have any notable potential. Despite their general health, the Uzumaki are a mostly-civilian clan to begin with. We have Mito-sama's knowledge, so not all will be lost."

"Both options have equal drawbacks and advantages," Sakumo answered. "You all need to vote, there's nine of you if I remain impartial. Who thinks we should head back with the kids and bring back a stronger force?" There was a long pause. "Five to four, sorry Tsunade, we're heading back. Set up a perimeter around the shack. Tsunade, if the kids need anything, it'll be up to you, the rest of us will take hour-long shifts in pairs, I'll take the two sunrise shifts. We leave as soon as the kids wake up and have eaten."

"No!" Tsunade protested. "We leave now and carry them. They can sleep as we run."

"They only just got off that boat, are you sure?"

"They're just tired and hungry, we can stop to eat in the morning, but the sooner we get back to Konoha, the sooner we can get help to Uzu!"

"Can everyone handle that?"

A chorus of affirmation answered him.

"Right. Tsunade, they're most familiar with you, why don't you bring them out and we'll wrap them in our blankets to keep them from freezing in the wind."

The door opened and I found that annoying thing in the back of my head tightening my arm around Kushina. Tsunade crouched in front of me. "Hey, kiddo, we're going to head back to Konoha as fast as we can so—"

"I heard your discussion."

"You were supposed to be asleep," she reproached.

I shrugged.

"Well, wait here for a minute, alright?"

I nodded and she started to pick up the sleeping kids and carry them to the door, waking them up just enough to meet the person carrying them. She disentangled Kushina from me last and carried her out. I followed her, tightening the blanket around my shoulders and dreading the indignity of being carried for who knows how long.

"Orochimaru, you're last," Sakumo said as Tsunade led me out with Kushina's face buried in the woman's neck.

"I'm not carrying some snot-nosed kid for hours. Carry him yourself, I'll run scout."

Sakumo rolled his eyes and crouched down. "Come on, kid, hop on my back," he told me.

I couldn't do it. I hated being carried my first time as a kid and as an adult I even stayed out of the piggy-back races when messing around after having a bit too much to drink. "I'll walk," I crossed my arms stubbornly.

Sakumo met my gaze for a moment before motioning for the others to move out without us. "We're not going to be walking kid—"

"Then I'll run—"

"If you were a Genin, I would consider it, but you won't be able to keep up with us. We don't have the time to teach you to tree hop, and you don't have the stamina to make it back to Konoha. You need to rest more than anything and I'm not above forcing you to sleep, got it? You can ride on my back and tolerate it, or you can wake up when we reach the village gates."

"Why can't I stay here?"

"You'll freeze kid, even with that blanket, or you'll be either captured or killed."

I ignored that statement. Sakumo crouched down and patted the ground beside him. I remained standing.

"You and I both know that this isn't about being carried. What's the real problem?"

I studied him carefully. I certainly wasn't a hero, but he clearly was. "If I told you, you'd think I was insane."

"Try me."

He was sincere, that much was certain. He genuinely wanted to help and I was significantly tempted to let him, simply because he could. _If_ I could trust him. "On one condition."

He thought carefully. "What condition?"

"That you don't betray my trust by telling anyone else, no matter the circumstances, or think I'm crazy or evil."

"As a shinobi, I can't make that promise, kid. I'm required to disclose everything to my Hokage, pertinent or not."

"Then leave me here and catch up with your team. I'll be fine, I promise." I knew I couldn't back that up.

"I am extremely capable of forcing you to come."

"But you won't, because you're not that kind of person, Hatake Sakumo."

"How do you know my name?"

I sat down beside him and pulled up my knees, not meeting his gaze.

He sighed. "I will not lie to the Hokage if I'm asked directly, but I will keep you secret and hear what you have to say with an open mind."

"Swear on everything and everyone you care about." That was probably overboard, but I wasn't going to take it back. I couldn't be too careful.

"I swear."

I decided to start with the bad news. "If nothing changes, in the wake of the, um, Third Great Shinobi World War, someone who hasn't been born yet is going to release the Kyuubi on Konoha and devastate the village. Do I have your attention?"

I watched Sakumo carefully out of the corner of my eye. His hand tightened into a fist, but otherwise, he gave no reaction. "That is an entirely plausible scenario, but you have absolutely no way to prove it."

"What if I could?"

"Then I fear the two wars that are looming in the future much more than the attack of a Bijū. I know there is much more to this story. Let's start with the obvious question. Why are you telling me, of all people?"

"Why are you listening?"

"Because I have an obligation to my village."

"I may not know a lot about you, but I respect you more than you know. The impact you make on others, both good and bad, will carry further than you can imagine."

"You seem to have an inflated image of me, kid. I'm not as influential as you seem to think. There's no way for an orphan from Uzu to know who I am."

"It will make more sense in a bit." I paused before deciding to start from the beginning. "I died this morning. There was a kid, probably eleven or twelve getting bullied by a teenager. I broke it up and once the kid was gone, I turned around and the teenager killed me. I was twenty-seven. I died, but it wasn't in this world. When I woke up, I was spinning on the swings in Uzu watching a bunch of orphans. I can't prove it; I just know it's true."

"Say I decide to write you off as hallucinating. What would you do?"

"Just walk away. I would hide in a small, forgotten village and let events play out. It all turns out fine in the end."

"And if I believe you?"

"I'll tell you everything and fight like hell to keep them alive and stop the Fourth Shinobi World War, which is infinitely worse than any war you can imagine."

"Then tell me everything."

I was quite thankful that age wasn't a determining factor of worth to a shinobi. "Well, before I died, there was a story that I haven't read for years…"

I didn't tell him everything, I skipped over a lot of details, like relationships, who had kids, and things like that while avoiding specifics, like who exactly was sent to the Kannabi bridge and who the Yondaime was going to be. It took me less than five minutes.

"You haven't told me much," Sakumo commented.

"I don't remember much and things have already changed, there's no way it can stay the same now."

"Well, I guess we're now going to fight like hell to keep people alive, aren't we?"

"You're not going to tell your Hokage."

"He's your Hokage now too. You'll be a shinobi like me, right?"

"I've been enlisted in the military, but I spent four years in communication. I'm not cut out to fight directly."

"You can do it, I'm sure of it, Kichiro. For now, I think you've been working too hard. You need to rest."

Sakumo laid a hand on my head and the night's ambient light faded.

* * *

 _Author's note: I've been getting a lot of reviews along the same vein, so I'm going to preface the rest of this story with a few notes:_

 _First, Kichiro is not meant to be seen as a hero, sometimes, he's not even supposed to be seen as a good person. He has some pretty significant flaws (and strengths) that I intentionally created as a part of his character to make him more relatable and real to the readers. Even though he tells the story, he is not a reliable narrator and doesn't always acknowledge his own shortcomings, just like a real person does. This holds true for the other characters as well._

 _Second, I (the author) am NOT Kichiro. I don't have much in common with him and it bothers me when readers assume the author and the narrator are the same individual. One of my goals when writing this story was to create a character as unlike myself as I could. I met with more success than I expected._

 _Third, I've had a lot of accusations of this being angsty and depressing. Considering this is properly tagged in the angst and tragedy genre, I'm not exactly sure why this is surprising and upsetting to some people._

 _I hope you enjoy and thank you for reading. Don't forget to review!_


	2. Chapter 2

A week later, a Chuunin escorted me and Kushina from the tiny apartment we had been given to the Shinobi Academy. The small stipend for food and necessities was barely enough for us to buy a change of clothes and two meals a day. It wouldn't be enough to cover much more but I could stretch it far enough.

"Nii-san?"

I wasn't sure exactly when I started off-and-on thinking of Kushina as my sister but I convinced myself it was when that niggling bubble in the back of my head finally burst a few days before. Most of the time, I was successful in ignoring the real Kichiro jabbering on, but sometimes he annoyed the hell out of me.

 _Nii-san?_ He said pointedly.

I ignored them both, stubbornly staring straight ahead at the Chuunin's back

"Nii-san? Are you alright?" Kushina asked. My hands clenched when the mocking came.

 _If you don't say something this second, I swear I'll—_

"Nii-san! Listen to me!"

"Um, I'm listening, Kushina, what is it?"

"There's something I really need to tell you."

"Then tell me," I answered simply, putting my arm around her shoulders.

"It's a secret."

"Then whisper it."

"I'll tell you later, okay?"

"Um, okay?"

"Nii-san?"

"What?"

"Look!" She shoved her hand in my face, making me go cross-eyed trying to see what was between her fingers. I grabbed her wrist and held it at a reasonable distance.

"It's a tooth."

"Yeah! I lost it this morning!"

"Cool. Maybe the tooth fairy with visit you."

She gave me an odd look. "Tooth fairy?"

"Yeah."

"What's that?"

"You put the tooth under your pillow at night and then the tooth fairy come, takes it, and leaves a coin behind."

"I've never heard of it."

"If you don't believe in her, she won't come."

"Did she come when you lost your teeth?"

"Yep!" I lied for both me and Kichiro. Small things like the tooth fairy, Easter bunny, and Santa Claus were the small wonders that made a childhood memorable, and happier. If I was stuck taking care of Kushina via Kichiro in my head, I might as well make it a little bit more magical. Besides, kids who didn't get the small wonders never seemed to be very happy.

The Chuunin leading us sent me an odd look, but eventually ignored the conversation.

"You never said anything."

I shrugged.

"You never say much."

I shrugged again and she giggled.

"So she'll come tonight?"

"Sure."

"Promise?"

"Promise."

The Chuunin turned to us and stopped outside the doors of a school building. "Here is the Academy. I hope you remember the way because this is the only time you will receive an escort, kids. I can't tell you where your class is, but it's in there somewhere. I look forward to serving alongside you." At that, he was gone. Kushina lifted my arm off her shoulders and threaded her fingers through mine, squeezing tightly. I led the way through the doors, remembering what Sakumo told me the last time I saw him.

 _Keep your sister safe, kiddo, and you can start that fight you swore to._

"Uzumaki! Both of you!" Someone called the second we stepped through the doors. "In here!" We were directed into two separate rooms and asked what felt like thousands of innocuous questions before we were reunited and ushered into a classroom a few minutes after the beginning of the class began.

As a real seven-year-old placed in front of a class of my peers, I probably would have been more than a little nervous, but to me, they were just kids, nothing to be afraid of. The teacher quieted the talking with a small bit of killing intent. I pushed the recognition of blatant mental conditioning out of my head and focused on the Chuunin's words before I said something I would regret.

"Alright class, we have two new students. Would you like to introduce yourself and your sister?" He asked me.

I bit back a rude comment about his continuing killing intent while Kushina tugged at my hand. "Please oblige the teacher before I say something I'll regret," I muttered to her so only she could hear. She grinned as I gestured her forward.

"I'm Uzumaki Kushina and my brother and I are going to be the strongest ninja in the village!" She declared loudly.

"Oh really?" A boy in the front row sneered. "Well, you're just a little baby who has to hold her big brother's hand!"

I barely managed to grab her around the waist before her temper led to broken teeth and bloody noses. Thankfully, her temper burned out fast and I managed to drag her to a seat towards the center of the room and sat her down between me and the kid with bright blond hair and blue eyes. He wouldn't pick a fight with Kushina. Hopefully, she wouldn't feel the need to fight with him either.

He bent over his notepad. A moment later he slid a note over to Kushina. She read it, smirked, and passed it on to me.

 _=I'm Namikaze Minato. Good job pulling one over on the teacher. So what's your name?_

I slipped the page under the desk as the teacher dropped a folder of loose paper for notes and assignments, a textbook thicker than my thigh, and two pencils in front of us. I took one pencil and scribbled my response in broken hiragana.

 _#I'm not a fountain to regurgitate information on command. If you want my name, find it yourself._ I smirked to myself.

I covertly slid the paper to Kushina, who passed it straight to Minato.

When he handed it back, Kushina read the answer and scribbled down her own two cents before sending it back to him. I was curious, but not enough to look over her shoulder. At least the real Kichiro was literate and I had inherited that skill from him, as well as language, or I'd be in some trouble. The note landed by my elbow and I scanned it.

 _=Is that a challenge?_

 _+You can bet your life it is._ Kushina responded.

 _=Accepted._ Minato finished and the note landed under my elbow.

 _#Kushina and I didn't make lunches this morning, so we were going to go the next street over and get something from the market. Want to come?_

"Uzumaki the older! Please pay attention!"

"Sir? I was paying attention. You were asking the class to pass yesterday's arithmetic homework to the person on the inside row." I responded as Minato's homework landed in front of me. I held it up as proof I was following directions before collecting the papers handed up to me, put Minato's on top, and handed the stack forward.

"Kindly do not distract your classmates."

I opened my mouth to argue, but Kushina kicked me. I snapped my jaw shut as the mathematics lesson began. It was simple algebra, but something I felt Kushina would need serious help with later, if her confused expression was any indication. Minato seemed to be bored, as if it was already far below his level. Frankly, I didn't give a damn about school, I could pick up the information easily and I doubted the grades mattered in the long run.

Minato scribbled something back and the note landed in my lap.

 _=Sounds like fun._

I tucked the note into my pocket and passed the assignment the teacher dropped in front of me down the row.

(-_-)

Lunch with Minato went as well as a lunch with two six-year-olds could go. Both seemed to enjoy the sport of seeing how far they could push the other's buttons. For the most part, I let them antagonize each other over ramen, which both suggested the moment I asked. I wasn't surprised.

What did surprise me was when Sakumo sat down on my other side looking quite worn out and ordered food.

"Hello, Sakumo," I muttered to him out of the corner of my mouth.

He slapped the back of my head.

I snorted and poked at my ramen.

"The tooth fairy?" He asked. "I've never heard of it."

"Probably never would have if you hadn't eavesdropped."

"Why would a fairy pay for a tooth?"

"They make fairy dust out of baby teeth."

"If they wanted fairy dust, why wouldn't they just kill the kids and collect it faster, or just take the teeth to begin with?"

"First, that's sick, second," I glanced at Kushina, but she was in the middle of a wrestling match with Minato, and losing horribly. "It's just a story for kids, it doesn't really have to make sense."

"The real world isn't that pretty."

"Well, the real world sucks. Might as well give the kids some happy memories to carry them through the rest of their shitty lives."

Sakumo shrugged and pressed a coin into my hand. "Sounds like a decent plan."

"Thanks," I tucked it into my pocket.

"I was thinking about what you told me."

"You would have to be an idiot not to." That earned me another smack. I half-wished Kushina saw it so she could tear into the man and I could get some satisfaction out of indirect retaliation.

"You said you would 'fight like hell to keep people alive.'"

"I did."

"I was just making sure. Do you have any plan for the future?"

"I don't want to be a shinobi."

"You don't have a choice, kid."

"I'm not a fighter."

"You're still a kid."

"I won't kill."

"Then you'll be killed."

"Then I will die."

A bowl was placed in front of Sakumo. He started his meal before continuing the conversation. "Do I need to add 'suicidal' to your psych evaluation?"

"An eye for an eye leaves the whole world blind just as death only leads to more death."

There was another break in the conversation, during which the two kids struggled over a dulled practice kunai.

"Have you ever thought of being a medic?" Sakumo asked suddenly.

"There's a war coming, several wars, and medics are the first targets." I opened my mouth to continue the argument when I considered a potential course of action. "I have an idea but you might not like it."

Sakumo's chopsticks froze halfway to his mouth. "I probably won't kid, but tell me anyways."

"Medics of opposing teams are the first targets in fights, right?"

"Yes, you've said."

"Well, tactically speaking, with less people being healed, there will be less enemies to fight, right?"

"That's generally how it works. Targeting another team's medic decreases the team's chances of returning alive, whether it be from slowing down due to injury, the loss of a teammate, or a combination of the two. Most solo operatives know at least fundamental iryo-ninjutsu."

"What if medics weren't targeted at all?"

"If you think that anything like that could ever happen, kid, you're kidding yourself."

"No, I'm not. For the most part in my world, doctors and nurses serve anyone and everyone who needs help, regardless of race, country, and religion."

"Sorry, kid, but that can't happen here."

"Why not?"

"Hypothetically, say you manage to get everyone to agree with this and all medics are neutral. How would they get to the people they need to help? Would they go with the teams? If so, what happens if the medic's team loses the fight? Their teammates are dead and now, because of their neutrality, they have to tend to the injuries of their opponents. I couldn't do something like that and I'm more open-minded than many shinobi. Now, a number of medics are being forced into this position. How does the opponent's team trust a medic who would naturally want revenge for their fallen comrades? Only the most pacifist iryo-nins would be able to treat an enemy, a majority would not. These medics would begin killing the very people they are supposed to treat. Congratulations, you just turned doctors into assassins."

I stiffened and stared down at my half-eaten meal, appetite gone.

Sakumo ruffled my hair. "You're smart, kid, but you have decades of tradition and conditioning working against you."

"I don't want to fight, I don't want to kill, and I don't want to die," I told him. I tossed the pouch with money at Kushina and walked away.

"What did you say to my brother?" Kushina demanded.

"He just has to come to terms with some things," Sakumo responded before I was out of earshot.

Ten minutes later, I was perched at the top of a tree overlooking a playground and wondering if I could figure out the tree climbing exercise to distract myself from the real problem. The time I was due back at the Academy came and went.

Hours later, Sakumo appeared at the base of the tree. "Your sister is waiting for you."

"She can take care of herself."

"She's six."

"Leave me alone."

"I can't do that, kid."

"Um, let me guess: orders."

"Exactly." With a few jumps, Sakumo sat on the branch below me.

"Go away."

"Talk to me, kid."

"Stop calling me 'kid'."

"Then talk to me."

"I don't want to fight, I don't want to kill, and I don't want to die," I repeated myself. "I don't want to be a shinobi!"

Sakumo stood and leaned against the branch I was sitting on. "You don't have a choice."

"Well, from here it seems extremely easy to just fail out. I'm missing class already."

"You have your sister to take care of."

"She's not my sister, she's just a girl who's going to grow up and die at the hand of some psycho with a grudge."

"You don't mean that."

"I am twenty-seven years old. I never had a sibling, I had a drunk for a mother and a father that was too obsessed with his military career to give a damn. I don't care to gain an obnoxious six-year-old as a little sister, especially if I'm going to be forced to screw up her life like mine was."

"So you'll abandon a little girl that looks up to you instead."

"I didn't choose her."

"You saved those kids, don't deny or downplay it. You saved them and they're your responsibility."

I kicked at Sakumo's face. He caught my ankle. "You told me I wasn't responsible."

"That was before I knew you had an adult's head on your shoulders."

"Asshole."

His hand tightened around my ankle and he jerked me off the branch, dangling me upside down over the ground as if I weighed nothing. I started to struggle and kick at his hand. Sakumo stepped further out on the branch. It bent precariously and I knew it should not have been capable of supporting combined weight. I froze as the ground swayed beneath me.

"Lesson one, land on your feet no matter what."

Shit.

"You sadistic homicidal jackass!" I snarled. Sakumo let go and I plummeted to the ground. I managed to twist in the air just enough to land on my side rather than my head. I rolled off my arm and looked down at it. My shoulder was up by my ear and it was certainly not supposed to be like that. Sakumo stood beside me and dragged me to my feet by my good arm.

I groaned and almost immediately sank to my knees, holding my injured arm tightly to my chest.

"Asshole!" I snarled. Belatedly, I realized that we weren't beside a playground, but in the center of what I guessed was a training field. A bad feeling coiled in my gut. "What the hell—" He backhanded me across the face.

With a violent jerk, Sakumo shoved my arm back into the proper position. He grabbed my jaw and forced me to look him in the eye. "Are you paying attention to me now?"

"I have been paying attention to you!" I snarled back.

"Then you'll have heard me when I told you that you will become a shinobi and it doesn't matter what you want. You will fight, you will kill, and hopefully you won't die. You're obviously not listening to me and you obviously don't have any respect because you don't seem to understand the fact."

I knocked his hand away from my face and clutched at my throbbing shoulder. Sakumo grabbed my injured arm and twisted it. I clawed at his hand and _screamed_ until he threw me to the ground and kicked the air out of my lungs. I flew a few feet away and rolled to a stop. "Why should I respect a murderer or someone who takes what they want simply because they can‽"

I did not even see him move before Sakumo grabbed the front of my shirt and slammed me into the ground. "You may come from a world where everyone can talk out their problems, but you're not in that perfect universe anymore. The only way you can get what you want is to be stronger, faster, and more ruthless than whoever you face, kid, there's no way around it. _Fight back_!"

"I won't!" I screamed back in his face.

I probably would have been better if Sakumo lost his temper, or even got the slightest bit angry at me. Then, he would have ended up knocking me out at the very least. Instead, he seemed to have expected my reaction.

I knew he was going to push me until I snapped. I knew it and I knew I could do absolutely nothing to stop it.

"Fight!" Sakumo growled at me, throwing me back to the ground and kicking at my chest,

"I am fighting!" I shouted back, rolling to my feet and retreating. "I won't be you!"

 _Fight him! Attack him!_ The real Kichiro ordered. I ignored the kid as Sakumo knocked my breath away with a well-placed punch. I landed on my hands and knees, my head spinning with panic from the lack of oxygen. When I managed to wheeze in a breath, Sakumo kicked me to the side.

His hand closed around my neck and the two of us crashed into the water. I clawed at his hand but we only seemed to sink deeper. I couldn't open my eyes underwater and I was quickly losing the tiny breath I managed before I was submerged. I kicked at where I guessed Sakumo's head was, but he only shoved me against the rocky stream bottom. Sharp rocks dug into my back.

I tried to pull his hand away from my neck, even as I twisted and struggled, but I was getting weaker by the second and my limbs couldn't produce the force I demanded of them. Just when I thought I was about to lose consciousness, I landed back in the grass, I rolled onto my back and sucked in as much air as I could as I wiped the water from my face.

Sakumo dropped to one knee beside me. When I regained some sort of normal breathing, I sat up and turned away from him. "I know what you're trying to do."

"I'm not surprised."

"It's not going to work."

"Maybe."

"Go away."

"Sorry, kid."

I stood up and walked away from him, clutching my stomach and staggering. I barely made it to the tree line before I was forced to stop with a groan of pain.

Sakumo pressed something that crackled like paper against my chest and I didn't even bother to look at what it was. A moment later, something, I figured it was chakra, rushed through my body and soothed some of the pain. When I looked down, I recognized it as a seal, but he pulled it away before I could see anything more.

"I'll meet you here tomorrow at sunrise. Don't be late." He vanished.

I had absolutely no intention of voluntarily seeing Sakumo ever again as I picked myself up from the ground and staggered towards the sounds of the city. Hopefully, I would be able to find my way back to my assigned apartment.

(-_-)

It was nearly midnight before I found the apartment and managed to unlock the door with the key that hung around my neck like dog tags. I tried to be quiet, hoping that I could arrive unnoticed by Kushina. Unfortunately for me, she was waiting at the kitchen table working on something by the light of a flashlight since there wasn't any electric light in the building.

"Nii-san!" She cried and barreled into me the second I closed the door behind me.

I patted her on the head awkwardly.

"I was worried about you! Where were you? Did something happen?"

"Yes something happened," I grunted to her. "Do you think any sane person _wants_ to come home in the middle of the night?" Perhaps that was a bit harsher than it needed to be. I flopped down heavily on one of the two small mattresses in the general living area and dragged a blanket over my head.

She brushed off my less than kind tone. "Nii-san, I have something you really should know."

"What is it?" I asked, doing my best to feign interest. All I wanted to do was sleep and not wake up until noon the next day. There was no way I was getting up for the Academy in the morning.

"Remember the clan's sealing library in Uzu?"

Kichiro's memories appeared in the forefront of my mind. The so-called library wasn't very impressive, it only held a copy of every single seal the Uzumaki clan produced as well as all the instructions for sealing in general. "Sort-of," I responded.

"Well, the morning of the attack I was playing a prank on everyone."

I had a bad feeling about what was about to come out of the little girl's mouth.

"So I sealed the entire contents of the library in this." She showed me a rather fat scroll I had seen her contemplating several times in the past week. "I was going to give it back as soon as they noticed it was missing, but then the attack came." She sat down on the mattress beside me. "I don't know what to do now."

"Don't tell anyone about it." I answered without hesitation. "Carry it with you at all times and never let any of it out of your reach. Memorize and learn as much of it as you can."

"Shouldn't I tell a ninja or the Hokage about it? It could help them. I heard one of the shinobi complaining that they had now lost all the knowledge of the Uzumaki clan and that it could be very bad."

I sat up and looked her in the eye, not feeling the slightest bit of kindness towards Konoha. "Let me tell you a story. Years ago, one of the founders of this village turned against it. He managed to summon a creature called the Kyuubi against his will to murder the other founder and destroy the village he helped create. To stop the creature's rampage and subsequent anger at being forced to act, the Uzumaki princess, who was married to the founder who did not betray what he built, was forced to use her talent with those seals to seal away the Kyuubi inside of herself. She's still alive, but she's getting old, so eventually the Kyuubi, who didn't have a choice in any of this, is going to be resealed into someone else. Only people of the Uzumaki in conjunction with their seals can safely contain the Kyuubi, the most powerful of his kind, inside of themselves. If you give those seals to the village, they will use them to keep sealing away the Kyuubi and his brethren, sentencing the creatures to confinement and torture and the people they are sealed within to being hated and feared."

"What make you so certain?" She asked. It wasn't a challenge, she obviously believed me and clutched the seals to her chest.

"You remember the story of Uzumaki Mito?" I asked her as the Kichiro kid inside me pushed memories of the orphanage to the forefront of my mind. It was distracting, but at least he volunteered something of use and I didn't have to make an active effort to ignore the kid's annoying commentary.

"Of course! She's a hero!"

"Yeah, well look at the story from the Kyuubi's perspective. Both sides were mean to him because of things he couldn't control. Is she so much of a hero now?"

Kushina's eyes went wide with horror as she shook her head.

"I didn't think so." At the righteous anger filling her expression, I decided to do a tiny bit of damage control. We were stuck in the village after all and I had enough of a conscience not to make it harder on her than it already would be. "Don't tell anyone or let anyone know in any way that you know about any of this. I know you can learn the seals and use them properly, but I don't trust anyone else to. At least not yet. It'll be your secret kunoichi skill, okay?"

She beamed but it quickly faded. "You said only the Uzumaki can hold the Kyuubi inside of them. Mito-sama is getting old and she's going to have to seal it inside one of us orphans because we're the only Uzumaki left!"

Damn, she was smarter than I thought. "Yes, she will," I responded patiently.

"Who is it going to be?" She chewed on her finger and drew her knees to her chest.

I saw no reason to give her a nice, comforting falsehood. "It will be one of us. The other children aren't strong enough, I heard the Tsunade woman say as much."

A second later I had a six-year old girl clinging to my chest and crying.

As I thought about it, I realized I could at least do something to stop a tragic future. "I promise they won't seal the Kyuubi inside of you, okay? I promise. You'll get to determine if you want people scared of you and it will be your actions and decisions that determine whether you're loved or hated by people, not someone else's. I promise."

She smiled slightly. The joys of children and not understanding that someone else would end up with the Kyuubi sealed in their gut. At least I wouldn't let it be me either.

"Ow, Kushina, not so tight!" I gasped as her arms tightened around some of the poorly-healed bruises.

"What happened?" She demanded, concerned and lifting my shirt before I could push her away. "Who did this to you?"

"Sakumo," I spat out the name. "If you see him, avoid him."

"I will," she promised. "I can fix the bruises, if you want."

"How?" I snapped out scathingly.

"I've already started learning stuff from the library when you haven't been looking. I got the idea when I couldn't help the other kids on the boat so I started learning healing seals."

Who would have thought? Little Kushina was a genius at seals.

"I can fix bruises, some broken bones, scrapes, and something called dislocation, but not much more. There were lots of pens and special ink and extra paper in the library when I sealed everything."

That was damn convenient. "Knock yourself out," I told her as she dashed to the table and grabbed a stack of something. Honestly, I half-hoped she would blow me up so I wouldn't have to deal with anything else. Unfortunately, I knew the girl was too good at sealing. "Um, use the seal for dislocation on my shoulder, I'm going to sleep."

"Wait a minute! Take off your shirt first so I can see where to put the seals!"

I did as she asked before turning away.

"You were limping when you came in, let me see."

I bit back an annoyed remark and pulled up my pant leg so she could see the bruise blossoming across the outside of my ankle and then the second bruise covering my knee. I didn't give a rat's fart about what she planned on doing, I just let the exhaustion dragging at my ill-fitting body take over.


	3. Chapter 3

Generally, I found mornings less than pleasant. Waking up before dawn to exchange Kushina's baby tooth for the coin Sakumo gave me quickly ruined it. I flopped back into bed afterwards. When the sun rose, nothing changed that fact. Kushina woke up and made a clumsy breakfast for herself, leaving me lying mostly-asleep on my bed.

I was used to being woken by people making breakfast, in my old apartment, the neighbor's kitchen was on the other side of a rather thin wall and they generally were up before five. My bed was right beside that wall.

This morning wasn't the slightest bit normal or pleasant.

"Nii-san, I'm going to the Academy, are you coming?" Kushina asked softly as she crouched beside my bed.

"No, just go. Don't forget the scroll."

"Are you feeling better?"

"Much better, just sore and exhausted. Now leave."

"Okay." She seemed a bit hurt by my dismissal, but left anyways.

Less than a minute later, a little girl's scream drove a knife into my head. I was out of my bed and pulling on my shirt while running to the door before the girl's lungs ran out of air. Kichiro was informing me in a frantic voice that it was Kushina's scream and urging me to help. On the steps between the second and third floors, Sakumo held Kushina by the arm. She clung to the scroll in one hand.

"Let her go!" I snarled at him. "She has nothing to do with this."

"We agreed to meet at sunrise," he stated.

"You ordered me to, I ignored you," I clarified.

"What could you possibly gain from that?" He asked, smirking. His grip loosened enough for Kushina to jerk away and run up to bury her face in my shoulder.

"Satisfaction," I hissed as him, but tensed as he took a step up.

"And that gets you what?" He took three more steps up. I twisted in Kushina's grip and used chakra to enhance my strength before picking her up, climbing onto the safety rail, and leaping across the street in one motion. I barely managed to land on my feet.

"Run," I growled at her. She didn't even hesitate before bolting towards the Academy.

The streets weren't busy, but there were enough people that someone should have noticed a shinobi stalking towards me with a knife out.

"Genjutsu," I spat out at him as he appeared in front of me. "You're a coward. You're too scared of what people would think if they saw you tormenting a kid."

Sakumo ignored me. "I see you've learned the first lesson: always land on your feet."

Shit.

"Now for lesson two: know when to defy expectations and when to fulfil them."

Shit.

Sakumo's hand closed around my wrist and the next thing I knew we were back at the training ground.

His hands flipped through hand seals and he vanished. It only took me a second to recognize it as a Genjutsu. Unfortunately, I had no idea how to dispel one.

There wasn't a lot that could scare me. I was too good at rationalizing my fear, turning it into something that didn't matter. It didn't help Sakumo any that I did have a not-so-insignificant death wish.

I liked to be contrary, just to be contrary. It didn't help me that I wasn't sure exactly how to be contrary in this instance. Before anything could happen, I closed my eyes and covered my ears so that whatever terrors appeared would have less of an effect.

Obviously, Sakumo wouldn't kill me or seriously injure me, it would completely defeat his purpose. He probably wouldn't drive me insane, which was a small comfort. I thought back to when Kushina taught me to access my chakra. It was surprisingly easy, especially when I compared the feel of my former body to Kichiro's. Someone else's chakra was enveloping mine, especially around my eyes and ears. I made a mental note to figure out exactly how big of a role chakra played in this world. My next problem was whether to break the illusion. The longer I contemplated the problem, the more irritating Sakumo's chakra became. I decided to experiment instead. That had to be decidedly not on the list of expected behaviors. I started with my ears, hoping I didn't make myself deaf in the process. Slowly, I worked visualizing the chakra fueling my hearing into my hands. To my surprise, I was somewhat successful. Sakumo's chakra fueling the auditory Genjutsu shifted onto my hands. At the same time, I lost all sense of sound. Anyone can cover their ears and block out most of the noise, but there's always vibrations that make it through, hell, the thrum of blood beneath the skin makes up most of the noise that drowns out whatever is trying to be blocked out. I slowly pulled my hands away from my ears. The loss of sound quickly equated to a loss of balance, and I tipped sideways.

Thankfully, the weight shifting in my legs allowed me time to catch myself so I didn't fall like a felled tree. My hands couldn't hear anything, so I effectively neutralized that portion of the Genjutsu. I didn't dare try the same with my eyes until I knew I didn't just completely blow out my hearing. I broke, disrupted, and scrambled the threads of Sakumo's chakra around me then released control over my chakra.

To my embarrassment, the rush of chakra back into my head knocked me out.

When I finally regained consciousness, I didn't immediately pick myself up.

"That was a dangerous move, kid. Probably up there with blindfolded Bijū fighting." Sakumo told me.

I sat up and finally opened my eyes. A few feet away, Sakumo sat whittling a stick into what appeared to be a senbon. He was nearly done and the sun was at high noon. My stomach twisted painfully. He tossed me a small bento box and chopsticks.

"I'm not hungry," I responded and shoved it away. My stomach growled painfully.

"Not hungry enough to set aside your pride, anyways. If you're not going to eat it, throw it away. We're done for today. Meet me here tomorrow at sunrise."

I scowled at him, but he didn't even look back as he walked away.

When I felt like he was gone, I tucked the bento under one arm and marched away from the training field. I made it to the Academy just in time for it to end. Kushina was one of the last ones out, with Minato at her side. I waited on a very familiar swing, tapping impatiently

They split off after a quick goodbye and Kushina made a beeline for me.

"Are you okay, Nii-san?" She asked, worried.

"I'm fine. I brought you something." I handed the bento and chopsticks to her.

"Hatake-san didn't beat you up again, did he?"

"No, I'm perfectly healthy now. There's no need for you to worry."

"But I am worried! You're being weird and sad and I don't like it!"

I threw an arm around her shoulders. "You have more interesting things to think about, right, Kushina?"

"Why don't you call me 'Kushina-chan' anymore?"

"Um, I guess I just got hit in the head a little too hard."

"I don't like it when you call me just 'Kushina'."

"I'm, um, sorry." I wasn't. The girl wasn't my sister.

 _She's my sister, so you will call her whatever she wants you too._

 _Shut up._

Kushina and I started to walk back to our apartment and I ignored the raging of a seven-year-old in my head and the sounds of Kushina shoveling the bento into her mouth. When we got there, I absently made the first microwaveable dish I could lay my hands on while Kushina worked on homework.

"Sensei told Minato that you weren't going to continue in the Academy, is that true?"

"I think so," I answered mutinously.

"Do you want to be a shinobi?"

"No, but I have to."

"Why don't you want to?"

"Because I don't want to kill people."

"But shinobi only kill bad people! They're heroes, you're a hero, why don't you want to be a bigger hero?"

"Shinobi kill whomever they are paid to." I told her as I picked at my food. "And I never wanted to be a hero. Part of the job description is generally, um, martyrdom."

"What's that?"

"It means dying for what you believe in."

"Oh. Well, I'm going to be such a great kunoichi that I won't die."

"You do that. I'm sure you can, but first you have to do your homework."

"You're going to be an awesome shinobi and you're not even going to the Academy or doing homework."

"Because I'm too smart and have to be brainwashed and conditioned to kill instead," I muttered to myself.

"What was that?"

"Um, I already know mostly all of the Academy stuff you're learning."

"Prove it."

"Fine. Finish your homework and you can quiz me. In the meantime, can you unseal the beginner section of our little library for me to read?"

Kushina unsealed the very first primer labelled 'Step One of Becoming the Best Seal Master Ever' and I snorted at the brazen title before opening it.

Three hours later, Kushina finished her homework and started to ask me every single question on it.

To my surprise as much as hers, I managed to get all the answers correct, though I didn't particularly approve of the phrasing of the questions. For example, the very first one for the basic algebra section was:

 _It takes two kunai or three shuriken to kill a target. You have sixteen kunai and twenty-four shuriken. How many targets can you kill?_

After the quiz session was over, I turned back to the sealing primer and Kushina latched on to a seal I was sure was supposed to be far beyond her comprehension.


	4. Chapter 4

The next day, I tried something different. I woke up a little more than an hour before sunrise and dragged Kushina out of bed. A half hour later, we were perched in the tree outside the Academy, waiting for the place to open. I was bored and struggling to read the hiragana from the huge textbook issued on the first day and enjoying the manipulation present in nearly every sentence. Kushina kept sending me odd looks when I started laughing at how insulting the textbook was to the intelligence of future shinobi. Besides the manipulation, there was no 'underneath the underneath' of the book. Either that or I was just an idiot, which I sincerely doubted.

An hour before the Academy was set to begin, Kushina met Minato at some extra lesson the two had apparently agreed to attend together. I sunk deep into the tree and watched as Minato carefully showed Kushina how to throw a kunai. I wasn't particularly surprised they hit it off so quickly.

When the Academy bell rang, I was feeling a bit smug at having thus far avoided Sakumo for the day. I knew he'd find me eventually, he was a Jōnin, but for now I was enjoying the small victory. Even if I was a bit disturbed by the game we were playing. Bored, I wondered how easy it would be to learn tree walking without moving from my perch in the tree. Mostly, it consisted of me putting my hand or foot against it and yanking until I figured out how to make it stay. About an hour before lunch, I was experimenting with sticking different parts of my body to the tree and mentally scolding myself for playing with power I didn't need.

"I see you've kept yourself busy," Sakumo said from directly above me. I nearly lost my balance in surprise. "Want to guess what today's lesson was?"

Shit.

"Lesson three: how to fight back." Sakumo crouched horizontally on the main part of the tree, beside me.

Shit. He won. We both knew it. I punched the tree in frustration.

"Mind telling me what we've learned these past few days?" Sakumo asked, smiling.

I scowled back. "Lesson one: always land on your feet. Lesson two: um, defying and fulfilling expectations. Lesson three: fight back. Translation: live or survive, think, and act. Taijutsu, Genjutsu, and Ninjutsu." I turned away from him.

"Now what was the message I wanted you to get out of it?"

"Hell if I know."

"Kichiro," Sakumo warned.

"Fine. You had to beat me up, terrify a little girl, and make me paranoid as hell to tell me that fighting doesn't equal murder."

"Very good."

"Brutalization, brainwashing, and conditioning."

"What do you mean?"

"In my world, it is a traditional military practice to turn civilians into soldiers. Brutalization is the process that causes them to function with an almost pack mentality, it's generally called basic training. Brainwashing is when they tell them what their job is and that they're going to do it and they're not going to fail. Conditioning is where they're taught to do their job."

"And you thought I was going to follow a tradition I've never heard of."

"Yes. There was a tiny flaw in my conclusion, laugh it up. In my defense, you are following it because it's still psychology."

"I'm not laughing because you're right. But you're too fact and reason oriented to stand by what you think when it doesn't have the most solid foundation."

I grunted an unintelligible response.

"I have something for you, kid."

"Stop calling me 'kid'."

Sakumo sat down on the branch beside me. "Not all shinobi are made to be assassins or to fight in the front lines. There's no shame in it. Some kids see through the brainwashing in the Academy. You did in a heartbeat if watching you read that textbook was any indication. Those that still want to become shinobi are offered apprenticeships. That's what I'm offering you now. Do you accept?"

I thought about it for a long time. "What's my other option?"

Sakumo's face turned impassive in answer. "One way or another, you will become a loyal shinobi and there are ways to ensure it."

I swallowed. "I'll take the apprenticeship, so long as you're the person I'm apprenticed to."

"Not very keen to expand your social circle?"

"Um, I wouldn't mind that, but I'm not going to deal with someone I can't give hell to."

"Fair enough, that's why I brought you these." Sakumo held two sturdy wooden sticks out in front of me. I took them warily, rolling them in my hands.

"What are they?"

"Sticks."

"I can see that."

Sakumo laughed. "You don't want to kill so I found a way that you don't have to. A few strong hits with a sturdy stick can be just as effective as a blade."

"And much less deadly."

"Exactly. You don't have to worry about coming home from missions smelling like blood every time." Sakumo placed a thick book in my lap. "Mentally, you're not built for hurting other people, kid. I'm sure you're perfectly capable, but just because I've convinced you now that learning to fight isn't inherently bad, it doesn't mean you'll remain convinced forever. I won't recommend you to work in the hospital every day, I don't think you have the patience for it. You'd make a great battlefield medic, kid, it's a role I know you'll like."

The ends of the sticks had straps tied to them, so I slipped them around my wrist and held up the book. It had basically everything I needed to begin learning the theory behind medical Ninjutsu, as well as how to learn it practically as well.

He tapped the book. "You'll be learning this on your own time, kid, but I'll let you practice occasionally when you're training with me. Now, will you meet me at the training ground for real tomorrow?" He asked.

"At sunrise," I confirmed. "But I'm going to be a few minutes late. It's the principle of the thing."

He swung down from the tree. "You'll go far, kid, once you learn to keep that tongue in your head where it belongs."

"Um, I'm not looking to go far."

"Yet that's what drives you forward."

(-_-)

That night, Kushina decided that it helped her learn and keep up with Minato in the Academy if she taught me everything she learned that day. Most of it never surpassed my high school level of knowledge, but I paid attention to her history and Ninjutsu lessons for obvious reasons. She also decided to recite to me everything she had learned from our personal Uzumaki Library that day.

Don't get me wrong, I found seals to be extremely interesting, but unlike Kushina, I didn't have any innate genius to help me learn. She began healing with only a week of study, but learning sealing was like learning to read music or write in another alphabet. I knew how to learn it; I had taken music lessons and Latin in high school and I took two semesters of Mandarin while in the military. It wouldn't take me too long to learn the language of sealing, but I knew I'd never be very good in comparison to Kushina. Medical Ninjutsu, however, would be almost entirely hands-on, which I could do. Sure, I had to memorize hundreds of bones, muscles, tendons, and ligaments, know exactly how the muscles and joints worked together, and know exactly how the heart worked as well as every other organ and system, but most of that I had already learned in high school anatomy and physiology, so it wasn't particularly bothered by the refresher. It helped that Kichiro was extremely interested in it as well and we could fill in where the other may have forgotten.

There was an entire section on how the brain worked, which Kichiro seemed especially interested in. I was as well, but in comparison to what I learned in high school, the current level of knowledge about the working of the brain was quite sparse, which frustrated us both.

In the morning, Kichiro woke me up a half hour before sunrise. I ate breakfast and, on Kichiro's behalf, woke Kushina to tell her she didn't have to avoid Sakumo and that she had to be up soon for the Academy.

I made it to the training ground five minutes after sunrise. Through the center of the training ground was a rope tied between two trees. I froze when I saw it.

"You're learning balance first."

"By practicing my, um, slacklining skills?"

"Slacklining?"

"It's an odd sport from my world. Um, basically you do tricks on a stretchy tightrope."

"And you can do this?"

"I could, but now I'm about half my size with a quarter of my strength."

Sakumo gestured towards the line.

"You first. I want to see your tricks, old man."

He snorted.

"Um, you're the one with white hair."

"You're going to regret that."

"Am I?"

"I'm the one with nearly two decades of shinobi experience."

"Right, can I take the old man comment back?"

"We'll see. Come here."

Sakumo tossed all his live weapons in a pile just out of falling distance of the rope and leapt on. The rope sunk about a foot under his weight.

"We're not starting katas just yet. It's much easier to get a lucky with a blade, major veins and arteries are never far beneath the surface of the skin. With sticks, you have to always assume you're at the disadvantage because they won't bleed your opponent dry before you. Right now, you're still a kid, that means you can't rely on your reach or strength to win you anything. You have to be faster, stronger, and more skilled than your opponent. All of that begins with your balance."

I nodded once and stepped up onto the rope. Sakumo grasped my forearm to steady me as he jumped down.

"The line is loose enough to allow you to move freely, but not so loose that losing your balance is dangerous, for now. Move around, jump a little, get a feel for where your center of gravity is."

I did just that. I started by walking a few steps in both directions. After a second of contemplation, I jumped down and stripped off my civilian shoes. I leapt back on and as I started to get a feel for the rope, I jumped to test my strength and balance. Carefully, Sakumo watched. From the way he jerked at my more sudden movements, he was probably worried I was going to hurt myself when Kichiro's body failed in way my old body wouldn't. He tensed as I jumped almost three feet in the air and landed with the rope diagonally across my back. I intended to let the tension in the rope drive me upright like a trampoline, but Kichiro didn't have my sense of balance and I tumbled off the rope and into the grass.

Sakumo crouched to help me up. "It's been a while since I've seen somebody fall like that on purpose. Can you refocus on the task at hand, please?"

"Just the one trick, then I'll focus," I promised.

He sighed, but gestured for me to try again. This time, I managed to land on my feet, even if I missed the rope.

Sakumo grasped my forearm as we both jumped back onto the rope. When we regained our balance, he released me. From nowhere, Sakumo produced an old, worn bokken. He held it perpendicular to the line we stood on.

"Your balance may not matter as much when you're attacked head on." He shoved me backwards for emphasis and I barely managed to avoid falling off. "But when I attack you from another direction your weight and size work against you." He swung the bokken at my shoulder and all but threw me off the line. I tumbled head over heels and stopped flat on my face. I felt one of my teeth loosen at the impact.

"You could have just said so! You didn't have to throw me off!" I protested, then spat blood.

"True, but this way you'll remember it and hopefully I'm discouraging stupid stunts before they're attempted."

"Or maybe just, um, _encouraging_ them." I muttered under my breath.

"I heard that."

"Stupid shinobi with stupid crazy-good hearing." That comment earned me a slap on the back of my head. I wasn't sure exactly how Sakumo managed it from five feet away, but I decided not to question it as I stepped back onto the rope while he jumped off and made two shadow clones.

The rest of the day was spent catching and returning water balloons without breaking them, knocking aside rubber balls and dodging shotput. There seemed to be no telling the difference, until I realized that Sakumo threw them with different strengths and I had to watch him, not the evil little spheres of trickery. Suffice to say, I wasn't happy when I thought the nice, innocent rubber ball turned out to be a solid metal shotput that nearly broke my arm. For the first few hours, I felt like it was just luck of the draw, though I was forced into several fancy maneuvers to avoid the shotput. At around noon, Sakumo dispersed the clones and held out a bento for me.

I thought the after-lunch exercise was straightforward: climb a tree without your feet. With my old body, I could probably do it just fine, even without chakra. With Kichiro's, it was much more difficult. For extremely short periods at a time, I could use chakra to strengthen my muscles and attach myself to the tree, but it never lasted long. I spent more time falling than climbing over the next hour. About a quarter of the time I landed on my feet and before my chakra levels dropped to dangerous levels, Sakumo told me to buzz off and do my own thing that didn't use chakra. Kushina and I repeated our routine from the night before.


	5. Chapter 5

Sakumo and I didn't take much longer to fall into a routine. Five days a week, a few minutes after sunrise, we would meet on the training ground. For the first few weeks, the first three hours of the day alternated between several different exercises to help with balance and core strength. The ones involving what he called 'rope-walking' and I insisted was 'slacklining' were my favorite, simply because it reminded me of the days with some of my friends in the Army when we would mess around and show off on the weekends. Also, the fact that Sakumo and I had a similar sense of humor often made me forget exactly what I was training to do. The next few hours focused almost entirely on building speed, reflexes, and flexibility. After lunch, I worked on chakra control.

On days he wasn't training me, I guessed that Sakumo took missions, but no matter how innocently or covertly I asked, I couldn't confirm the thought. I wasn't curious enough to stalk him just yet, but occasionally I would catch a glimpse of a bandage under his collar or beneath his gloves, and if I paid attention, I would notice the occasional stiff movements. Either way, while Sakumo was on missions, I spent the days practicing medical Ninjutsu or studying Fūinjutsu. Tsunade had set up a section of the hospital for medics-in-training to work under the supervision of a retired medic-nin.

I was very obviously the youngest person there. Most medics didn't begin training until they were at least Chuunin, simply because few Genin or Academy students had both the chakra capacity and the control necessary to be a medic in the first place. Since I was an Uzumaki, I had the chakra I needed and the daily practice improved my control by leaps and bounds. I was also the only boy, which surprised me. In fact, I found a total of three male doctors in the entire village. They were all civilians.

By the end of the first six months of this routine, I found I had learned nothing about Sakumo's life. Sure, I figured I knew his personality quite well, but I had no idea who his friends were, what his hobbies were (besides training me), or what kind of food he liked. At the same time, he added katas from several styles of stick fighting he planned on teaching me, how to throw kunai, shuriken, and senbon, turn practically anything into a defensive weapon into the training regime, as well as other shinobi skills such as detecting and dispelling Genjutsu (which he was liable to hit me with at any point in the day), making and avoiding traps (which were set up all over the training ground), surveillance, the basics of infiltration, and survival. Before, I had time to make dinner with Kushina (occasionally with Minato as well) and listen to her lectures of what she learned in the Academy. After the rest was added to my training, she spent the afternoon with the blond and several others training, we ate take-out four days a week, and stayed up until midnight while Kushina finished her nightly review and I studied sealing by the light of the flashlight dangling from a hole we made in the ceiling. We both worked on memorizing as much of our clan's history and legal procedures and worked to keep alive as much of the clan as possible, even if it was only the skeleton of its former glory.

By the end of my first year in Konoha, Sakumo still hadn't taught me any Ninjutsu or Genjutsu, besides giving me ideas of which medical jutsu to learn next, and hadn't even started teaching me to apply what I knew about Taijutsu in an actual fight.

As far as I could tell, Kushina's first year in Konoha went great. Her friendship with Minato, the class genius, had deterred most of the bullying I remembered she had to deal with in canon, and she had taken to pulling the 'big brother' card whenever she didn't feel like dealing with it herself. The entire Academy knew that Uzumaki Kushina's older brother was an apprentice to the reasonably well-known Jōnin, Hatake Sakumo, and that deterred the rest of the bullies. The fact that Kushina was the second-best in the class helped as well, though it made her a social pariah to the other girls because their crush, Minato, paid more attention to her than the rest of them, who specifically tried to get his attention and Kushina, the foreign girl who popped out of nowhere, had his attention from the moment she stepped into the room with tangled hair, ragged clothes, and a missing tooth, intent on beating up whomever irked her.

I, on the other hand, had my own problems to worry about. I was never a very social person. I tended to make a small circle of friends and rarely ventured outside of the social sphere. I didn't have the patience for mindless conversation, which made my time working in the training section of the hospital as tedious as it was interesting and useful. The fact I was working with girls didn't bother me as much as the fact that most of them saw me as little more than a cute wannabe medic boy there for them to hug whenever they were in a ridiculously good mood, or order about on gofer work when they were in a bad mood. I lost my temper several times when their bad mood coincided with mine and it turned into a rather impressive shouting match between me and several girls at once.

Intellectually, I was just as good as them. My chakra reserves were a bit smaller and my control a fair bit below theirs, but still passable. I could do my job just as well as them, even better than them when it was put in the context of my 'age' and how long I'd spent practicing. It grated on my nerves when they ignored that bit in favor of the tiny detail that I wasn't even a shinobi yet. Fortunately, the supervisor let me tell them off, then separated us before the girls could have their say. The only reason I got away with telling them off was because the shinobi patients found it amusing and fewer people skipped out of treatment when I was there, hoping to see something degenerate into a fight.

It gave me immense satisfaction when I managed to graduate the program in half the time, before many of the girls who had begun before me.

At that point, Sakumo approached me about becoming a shinobi and joining a Genin team. I was tempted, the routine that we had settled into was a bit boring, but in the end, I realized that the closest I had ever come to a physical fight in this world was when I leapt into the boat to get away from the Kiri Shinobi attacking Uzushiogakure, and I knew I wasn't anywhere near ready. Shortly after that, Sakumo started to teach me how to apply the hundreds of kata I had learned with the sticks, my fists, and Sakumo's bokken.

When I could defend against him paying just enough attention to not put me in the hospital, he started to arrange for me to spar once or twice a week with the Academy class set to graduate that year. After a few false starts and a little bit of ridicule while I got over my aversion to soundly beating little kids, I was easily the best in the class, even though they were all a year older than me.

Over the next year, Kushina lost five teeth and my front four teeth grew in while the next four had come out. I remembered losing my baby teeth the first time and I had no desire to undergo it a second time. Honestly, the second time was much worse. The gaps in my teeth annoyed me just as much as actually having a loose tooth. I suffered through one of them wiggling for a week straight. The next one that got loose was yanked out the second it was no longer useful for chewing. That incident taught me that it was better to let my gums heal themselves than try and heal them with iryo-ninjutsu. I ripped the tooth out one of the days Tsunade was assessing me and she laughed herself to tears when I started snarling at my bleeding mouth and how iryo-ninjutsu sucked at dentistry.

Shortly after Kichiro's ninth birthday and a week after I solidified my position as a better fighter than any of the squirts, Suna declared war on Konoha for 'financial reasons'. Kumo followed suit by declaring war on Kiri. Kiri offered an alliance with Konoha, who rejected it because of what happened in Uzu. Iwa declared war on Konoha and Kumo at the same time Suna declared war on Iwa while making an alliance with Kiri, who declared war on Konoha shortly after. I had no idea why everything exploded at once but I knew things were about to get bad fast.

Three weeks later, any Academy student fit enough to run messages and smart enough to hold their own in a fight was rushed through to graduation. That included Minato and Kushina. A week before their graduation, Sakumo informed me that I didn't have a choice but to take the exam with them, and until the exam was to take place I would be attending Tsunade's five-day class on the role medics would play in the war, then join Sakumo's team as their medic. Somewhere in that was a veiled threat that if I failed, I would be placed in the ROOT program.

I followed orders, but avoided him for the entire week.

The Academy exam was frankly a joke in comparison to the training I underwent with Sakumo. There was a mediocre obstacle course during which at a random point a Genjutsu was placed for us to dispel. We had to be able to critically hit four moving targets with only four of our choice throwing weapons. We were placed in a Taijutsu match with one of the Chuunin proctors and had to survive for five minutes, then were ordered to perform the three basic Academy jutsu as well as one other. I was too lazy to go through all the hand seals for one of the several defensive jutsu Sakumo had taught me, so I just broke my little finger and healed it without any seals. It impressed the proctors and I exempted the written portion of the test, because they figured that if I had the know-how for medical jutsu, it was pointless to have me sit through an exam I'd probably ace without trying. I was only a minute late to Tsunade's last class, but when she saw the brand-new hitai-ate and my team assignment clutched in my fist, she let it slide with a disapproving scowl. I scowled back on principle.

(-_-)

Whenever a new teammate joined an active team, there was a required two-week acclimation period. As such, I was scheduled to spend my first two weeks as a Genin with Sakumo and his three teammates. My very first scheduled mission was a B-rank, which frankly scared the hell out of me. I was slightly comforted by the fact that Sakumo and another of his teammates were full Jōnin, another was a Tokubetsu Jōnin and the last one was a Chuunin. Our first meeting was somewhat interesting.

I was five minutes late to our meeting because Tsunade had pulled me aside after the last field medic class to tell me that while my shenanigans in the training program were entertaining, I was now a shinobi and if she heard even a rumor of me breaking any of her medic-nin rules she would pull me off the field and stick me in the recovery ward of the hospital until I learned my lesson. I retorted that she didn't have the authority because all medics with the slightest potential, no matter what rank, in battlefield positions were being discharged no matter what. I left before she could argue.

"You're late!" Sakumo snapped as I dashed onto the field.

"Tsunade thinks I'm a rule-breaker so she felt the need to threaten me," I retorted, earning myself a slap on the back of my head.

"You are a rule-breaker, kid, and a troublemaker. If you told her off for being right—"

I snorted, earning myself another hit.

"He's six!" One on my new teammates exclaimed in disgust. "We can't afford dead weight!"

"I'm nine!" I retorted.

Sakumo clamped a hand over my mouth before I could add an insult to the statement. "He's been apprenticed to me for nearly two years, he won't be a dead weight. We need a medic on our team and he's been certified for over six months even though he only got off his ass and took the Genin exam today. Now, with a medic on our team, we can take higher-ranked missions more often. There is a new policy on medics. They're not supposed to fight unless it's an absolute last resort. As our medic, we defend him. That means he's going to be the one carrying the mission scroll, maps, and any other vital mission supplies, not me." At this, I managed to slip out of Sakumo's grip. "Now, as a medic, even though he's a Genin, he only answers to me, Tsunade, and the Hokage, so haze him at your own risk, because Tsunade doesn't like her medics being harassed and we all know the Hokage almost always lets her have her way. Everyone sit down, we're doing introductions, Inuzuka, you start."

We all sat in a circle of the training ground and a man with spiky black hair scowled as he introduced himself. "I'm Inuzuka Jiro, full Jōnin. My partner is Takumi, also a Jōnin. On mission, he's called 'Dog', no exceptions." He whistled once and a huge dog bounded out of the trees. The creature was covered with thick, midnight black fur and nearly twice my size. "We specialize in my clan techniques, close combat, and Ninjutsu." The dog sniffed at my face and I quickly scratched behind his ear to distract him when he covered half my face with slobber in a single lick. Unfortunately, it only excited the creature and he knocked me backwards to better down me in slobber.

I liked dogs, they were smart, fun to wrestle with, but I preferred the ones that did not resort to licking to communicate their approval of an individual. The dog had more chakra than me and almost completely obscured mine as he lay down on top of me. I smirked as I fended off Takumi's enthusiastic greeting and performed a silent substitution with Jiro. Takumi barked happily the second the switch was complete and Jiro shouted indignantly. The group laughed good-naturedly. My smirk turned immediately into a scowl when I saw Sakumo holding out a hand to the other two teammates, who handed over a sizable sum of money.

"What was the bet over?" I demanded.

"That you would prank Inuzuka within five minutes of meeting the team," Sakumo answered. "They bet you couldn't pull it off."

"You should've told me and I would have thought up something more original."

Sakumo shrugged and slapped the lot into my hand. "That was original enough for me. Here's part of what I owe you."

"How did a kid win a bet against you, Hatake?" One of the others, who looked like a textbook Nara, asked.

"He bet he could beat up one of the Sandaime's students."

"The hell, Hatake? You could've gotten the kid killed!" The person to my right barked. He had light brown hair that wisped across his face, blurring his features.

"The bet was that I could have one of the Sandaime's students beaten up by the end of the day," I clarified as I tucked the money into my short, dark green, sleeveless kimono, which looked like a male version of Kushina's canon outfit from when she was a Genin. I crossed my legs, which were covered by dark green shinobi pants and adjusted the strap of my black shinobi sandals. "So, I told Tsunade that I overheard that Orochimaru had managed to calculate her bra size and was bragging to Jiraiya, so Jiraiya stole one of her bras to try and prove Orochimaru had miscalculated and let the entire thing play out. Tsunade beat up both of them and neither saw it coming. She knew I was lying, but she was mad at them for something else and the Sandaime had forbidden her from beating the two of them up for it, so she used the excuse I gave her. I got the equivalent of my monthly orphan's stipend off him and a week off from Tsunade. Win-win for me."

"You're a little cheat!" Jiro snapped as Takumi finally rolled off him. The effect of his anger was all but neutralized by the fact he was scratching the dog's belly and covered with hair and slobber.

"I ain't winning if I ain't cheating."

"You're a bastard for training your apprentice like that, Hatake," the man to my right laughed.

"Hey! He came like that. Shimizu, introduce yourself next."

The person to my right, who didn't seem to have a problem with insulting Sakumo, spoke. "I'm Shimizu Arata, Tokubetsu Jōnin. I specialize in intelligence, Genjutsu, and traps."

"Nara, you next."

The last person on the team raised a hand. "Nara Saburo, Chuunin. Specialization in long-range combat. I find it unfair that the kid is exempted from dress code, Hatake."

"There isn't a dress code for Genin," I argued.

"How about you introduce yourself, kid, before you start picking fights," Sakumo suggested.

"Uzumaki Kichiro, Genin. I'm a medic, but no specialization yet. Why don't you introduce yourself as well, Sakumo?" I asked pointedly.

"Hatake Sakumo, Jōnin and team leader. No specialization."

"So your student is a disrespectful little cheat," Jiro amended his previous accusation.

"We have an agreement," Sakumo answered before launching into a lecture on the team formation and roles.

We went deeper in depth about individual abilities and Sakumo outlined strategies in the dirt for the rest of the day. When the sun was about to set, Sakumo sent me home to meet Kushina just in time for when we agreed to meet. The second I landed, Minato slammed into me.

"Where's Kushina?" He asked frantically. "She said she'd meet me here an hour ago, but she hasn't showed and there's no note! We're on the same Genin team and she had forgotten something at the training field and said she'd meet me here but it's been an hour and when I went back to the field, she wasn't there and had left this!" Minato shoved the scroll that contained the Uzumaki library into my hands.

Shit. I did not expect her to be kidnapped this soon. If anything, I expected Kumo to kidnap me instead, since I made it clear, even to outsiders, that I did not agree with many of Konoha's policies. In hindsight, I suppose it made sense. Kushina spent most of her time with Minato, who was just a Genin, I just spent almost the entire day in the presence of Jōnin, and frankly, I was a better ninja than her, no matter what my rank said.

"She'd never leave that behind, Kichiro! That's her special scroll! I think she's been kidnapped! Kichiro! Are you listening?"

I shoved the scroll into my kimono. "Yes, I'm listening. You're probably right. The _only_ reason she would leave this scroll behind would be if she was kidnapped. How long has she been gone?"

I wasn't sure Minato heard anything after I confirmed his fear.

"Minato!" I snapped. "How long has she been gone?"

"Less than an hour."

"Right." I leapt up to my door and pulled out a scrap of paper from one of my pockets along with a pencil and shuriken. I scribbled 'assistance required, Kushina kidnapped, Kichiro and Minato in pursuit' onto the paper in the standard Konoha code, noted the time, pinned it to the door, tied one of my hairs around the shuriken, and leapt back down to Minato. "Take me back to the training ground you last saw her at." I ordered.

Minato didn't hesitate to grab my wrist and drag me there. It only took a moment for me to find a clump of her hair by the edge of the clearing.

"Shit! Sakumo never taught me to raise an alarm," I snarled at no one before turning to Minato. "Come on, we're going after her, top speed and I'm taking full responsibility. You know the Inuzuka tracking formation, right?"

Minato nodded.

"Good. Let's go."

Just like that, we were off. I made sure to keep my cursing in my head for Minato's sake. Every time I saw one of Kushina's hairs, I dropped a few of my own on top of it to strengthen the trail. We followed it to a hole in the wall. I did my best to trip every security alarm I could see before we were through the wall. While the people who took Kushina hadn't left much of a trail, Minato and I made sure to leave as obvious of one that we could, not that anyone seemed to be following us, to my immense displeasure. The village was supposed to be at war.

It was almost midnight when Minato started to fall behind. I stopped and motioned him over to me. Within a minute, I healed the aching soreness in his legs that slowed him down, and we were off again.

I guessed it to be almost two in the morning when we finally caught a glimpse of Kushina. Minato and I stopped abruptly. I started to sign instructions to him, but he just looked confused. I signed them again and he shook his head. Right, Jōnin normally taught their teams the signs and Minato hadn't learned yet. I grabbed his arm and dragged him out of earshot.

"Um, I'll jump in front of them and distract them. You neutralize the threat from behind, got it?"

Minato nodded once and I took off. In less than a minute, I landed just inside of a standard attack range and dramatically pulled my sticks from where they were secured to the small of my back.

"Give me back my sister!" I demanded loudly. The last syllable of 'sister' masked the sound of Minato knocking out the Jōnin in the back and lowering him to the ground without a sound.

"Oh really, little boy, we could use another Uzumaki. How about you take her from us?" He walked towards me, just as Kushina took out the second Jōnin's knee with a vicious kick and Minato knocked him out before he could make a sound. I didn't wait for the Jōnin to launch his attack, I leapt forward. He threw a kunai and everything seemed to slow as I twisted in midair to avoid the blade going straight into my heart.

Just as I felt the blade press against my kimono, a giant hand closed around the handle while the other shoved me backwards and out of range of any stray attacks. I landed on my feet and crouched defensively as the new arrival turned to me.

"Sensei!" Minato and Kushina cheered.

I recognized Jiraiya in a heartbeat, but Sakumo had stressed the fact that I always needed to confirm identity when in the field.

"Easy, does it, kid, you alright? You're Hatake's apprentice, right?" Jiraiya tried to placate me. The fact he still had a kunai in his hand did not help.

 _Confirm identity._ I signed to him in the little bit of the Jōnin sign language I knew from Sakumo. It looked like I was just readjusting my grip.

Jiraiya didn't respond. It could have meant one of two things, first and most likely: Jiraiya thought I was just adjusting my grip since I was a Genin and probably shouldn't know any of the Jōnin signs. The second option, which I went with just to be safe was that he was an extra member of the Kumo team.

"Kumo teams operate in standard groups of four. The entire Academy knows I'm apprenticed to Hatake." _Confirm identity._

Jiraiya holstered his kunai and tapped his right thigh with four fingers then all five digits, the current sign for a Konoha Jōnin. I responded by putting away my sticks and adjusting my hitai-ate with my second finger and thumb, the sign for a Konoha Genin.

"Hatake's taught you well, kid," Jiraiya commented, straightening from his defensive crouch. "But Kumo infiltration teams—"

"Operate in teams of three, as do the abduction teams, I'm not an idiot. You could have just responded the first time, Jiraiya."

"You are extremely disrespectful for a puny, day-old Genin."

I stuck my tongue out at him. "No medic takes any special care to respect you in particular." I brushed past him to where Kushina was leaning heavily against Minato and holding her ribs. "Tell Tsunade I said thanks for the week off."

Jiraiya's face turned red. "You're the squirt who—"

"Yes, I am," I answered while I crouched and pressed a hand against Kushina's side. It took me almost ten minutes to heal the fractured ribs. When I finished and stood, Kushina hugged me tightly. After a second, she pulled Minato into the hug as well. I took the opportunity to use a bit of medical Ninjutsu to check for any further injuries on them.

I patted them both on the head and pulled away, turning to face Jiraiya with a question. "I know you're supposed to be reporting in three and a half hours, kid," he stated firmly before I could say a word. "And you may not go on ahead and try and make it. Kumo was after a Uzumaki. You're staying with me until we're back in the village."

Minato and Kushina looked between us in confusion at the sudden tension. They may have missed the threat, but I got it. Minato and I were in trouble for leaving the village without permission. Well, at least I promised him I'd take responsibility. Better I get in trouble than the future Yondaime to have a black spot on his record. Besides, it's not like I hadn't tried to draw attention to myself as I was leaving. I couldn't do a thing about it now, so I just picked up the smallest of the Kumo nin by an arm and a leg, hefted him onto my back, and started marching back towards the village. Kushina leaned on Minato, Jiraiya hoisted the other two Kumo nin, and so the long walk back began.


	6. Chapter 6

When we made it back to the village, it was nearly noon of the next day. The two youngest were about to fall over with exhaustion. I should have been tired as well, but considering part of Sakumo's training had consisted of functioning when exhausted, combined with I trick I had devised by combining theories from my world and medical Ninjutsu of this world, I could theoretically stave off the need for sleep indefinitely. I didn't dare try it for more than twenty-four hours at my current age.

Jiraiya dropped the Kumo nin at the front gate with a pair of Chuunin before putting a hand on the back of my neck and all but dragging my reluctant ass to the Hokage's office, Minato and Kushina trailing behind, their feet dragging. Sakumo met us at the entrance without a word and grabbed my arm tightly so Jiraiya could escort his Genin inside, a hand on each of their shoulders. It didn't take long for us to appear in front of the Hokage. There were four other people in the room. One I immediately recognized as Danzō by the X on his chin, who had the other two council members flanking him. The finely dressed redhead, the only person in the room who remained seated when we walked in could only be Uzumaki Mito.

The Sandaime motioned for a report. Jiraiya, the highest ranking of us, began.

Around midnight, Jiraiya had found the note (which he placed on the Hokage's desk along with the shuriken marked with my hair) when he had stopped by the apartment to deliver orders to Kushina, assuming Minato would be there as well, since he hadn't returned to the orphanage. I was slightly annoyed by the fact that he thought delivering orders at midnight to two Genin who should have been asleep at that hour was a perfectly okay thing to do. He noticed the hair and immediately returned to the training ground where he had last seen Kushina, correctly assuming it would be the trail he needed to follow. It hadn't taken him long to pick up the trail and race after us. He caught up to us while we were planning to intercept the Kumo team and decided to remain hidden until he was needed. After describing the fight and summarizing the aftermath, Jiraiya motioned for me to give my report.

"I had just arrived at my apartment complex when Minato told me that Kushina hadn't met him when she said she would. He said he had gone to look for her and found her scroll with some of her favorite things sealed inside on the training ground." I held up the scroll with the Uzumaki library in it. Kushina had mentioned once that the seal on the scroll would only open for her, so I had no problem arrogantly waving it around. "Sorry I forgot to give this back earlier." I leaned around Jiraiya and handed her the scroll before continuing. "Minato and I quickly concluded that she had been abducted. By that time, her position had been unknown for nearly an hour. I wrote the note and left it on my door while we went to see if we could find a trail, which we did."

"Why didn't you raise an alarm?" The Hokage asked sharply.

"With all due respect, Saru—"

Sakumo's hand tightened in warning.

" _Sandaime-sama_ ," I amended, pointedly looking in Sakumo's general direction before turning my attention back towards the Hokage. "At the time this occurred, I had been a Genin for less than a day, and my team leader had not had the chance to tell me how to raise said alarm, considering the first day on a new team is traditionally spent on introductions, ability assessment, and getting an idea of which team formation would be most effective. Pre-Genin are not taught how to raise the alarm for a security breach for a reason."

"Why didn't you report the situation to the nearest shinobi?"

"There were no shinobi present. Our apartment is on the edge of the village, far removed from the shinobi paths."

"Very well, continue."

"Minato and I found the trail of hair Kushina had left behind at her and Minato's team training ground."

"Standard procedure dictates immediately reporting MIA teammates to the nearest superior officer. Why didn't the two of you report when you confirmed your teammate to be MIA?" Danzō interrupted, addressing Minato with a small amount of killing intent. The kid stumbled backwards under the unexpected pressure, though part of it might have been exhaustion.

I jerked out of Sakumo's grip and stepped between Minato and Danzō, my arms and legs spread in a defensive position. "First, as a certified medic, I am automatically a ranked shinobi and I am Minato's superior officer. He did everything by the book, so you can't rip into him for anything. Second, it had been less than an hour since Kushina was last seen, officially, she couldn't be considered MIA for another five hours. Third, while inside the village, the standard procedure for individuals unaccounted for is that the closest superior officer is to attempt to locate the individual. There is no procedure for when that attempt takes said officer out of the village. Finally, according to all relevant statistics, she was supposed to be already dead, and her body was about to be put up as a message to the village. _Orphaned Genin_ aren't kidnapped for ransom, information, or as leverage and if there was something special about her, procedure dictates that I, as her immediate family and potential leverage against her, should have known the instant it became relevant or when I started training to be a shinobi. You have absolutely no ground to be issuing threats or accusing me or Minato of breaking protocol, councilman."

"Control your Genin!" Danzō barked at Sakumo.

"Control your advisor!" I barked at the Hokage, but my eyes never left Danzō and I made sure to only include him in the angle of my body.

It was a testament to the fact that I was right that Sakumo didn't move on Danzō's order. He signed at me behind his back, telling me to be respectful.

 _Genin: normal?_ The Hokage asked Sakumo in the standard sign language. I nearly missed the message it was so fast and practiced.

 _Normal._ Sakumo confirmed. Good to know no one messed with my mind, but I could have told them that. I was very proud of myself for not even raising my voice. "Stand down, Uzumaki," Sakumo ordered. I straightened and stepped back into my position beside him.

"May I finish my report, Sandaime-sama?" Ha, I could speak politically if I wanted to.

The Hokage gestured permission.

"After discovering the trail of hair, I began to add to it with my own as we followed it to the village wall. It was there that I deliberately set off every security measure I came across, which totaled to thirteen different seals meant to prevent any unauthorized individual from entering or exiting. They didn't do a damn thing."

"How did you know the purpose of the seals?" the Uzumaki woman asked suddenly.

"I lived in Uzushiogakure for over seven years where nearly every surface has a seal of some sort on it. It's a simple thing to identify the exact same seals that covered every entrance and exit of the orphanage I grew up in, Uzumaki-san, especially when the same hand made them. Your hand."

The room tensed. She hummed, satisfied. "You're your parents' son." She exchanged a meaningful glance with the Hokage. "Continue with your report." I dismissed the comment and continued.

"When the seals did nothing, Minato and I continued to follow the trail as fast as we could. Eventually, we came upon the team with Kushina. The rest went exactly as Jiraiya-san described."

"Minato-kun, do you have anything to add?" The Hokage asked kindly.

"I-I do not, Sandaime-sama."

"Kushina-chan, please give your report."

Kushina stammered through retelling how she had gone back to the training ground to get her favorite kunai she had forgotten after her team meeting and when she had gotten there, she saw something strange in the trees. Once she recognized the Kumo hitai-ate, the had tried to run towards the village, but she tripped and accidentally dropped the scroll in the pile of leaves she landed in. Once she realized the ninja were abducting her and not trying to kill her, she started pulling out her hair to make a trail. For a while they carried her as they ran, but once they were far enough away from the village without any sign of pursuit, they arrogantly decided to slow down. She finished with the fact that they used signs to communicate and never spoke until I appeared in the path.

"Thank you, Kushina-chan, Minato-kun. You are dismissed. Go home and get some rest."

I started to follow them.

"Kichiro-kun, please stay. Jiraiya, would you escort them home, please?"

Jiraiya nodded and escorted his team out the door.

"Kichiro-kun, as the only present medic, were there any injuries?"

"Kushina had a few ribs with greenstick fractures, which I fully healed on-site, as well as a few scrapes and bruises, all of which will heal in a few days. Everything aligned with her report. The cracked ribs likely happened while she was being carried and the scrapes and bruises are consistent with several falls, though some were from earlier in the day. Minato and myself are uninjured, but I was not able to confirm Jiraiya-san's health."

"Shimura-san, Mitokado-san, Utatane-san, you are dismissed." The council nodded and left. "Hatake-san, please wait outside."

I shifted uncomfortably as Sakumo left.

"Sit down, Kichiro-kun," Mito invited, gesturing towards the chair. Warily, I sat on the edge of the seat.

"Are you aware of why your sister was targeted?" The Hokage asked.

"Officially, no, I am not."

"Unofficially?"

"Unofficially, I can make an educated guess on the matter based on information that has been given to me."

When I didn't elaborate, the Hokage prompted, "What is that guess?"

"The Uzumaki clan members generally have an abnormally long lifespan, exceptional vitality, and chakra reserves comparable to the Senju and Uchiha clans, which gives them a significant advantage on the battlefield. Whomever controls the remnants of the clan hold the potential to build a second Uzumaki clan, bred specifically for frontline combat, which they are naturally suited for, rather than as the seal masters they had become. The orphanage where the other surviving Uzumaki children live is guarded by Chuunin. I am almost always in the company of at least one Jōnin between my work at the hospital and training with Hatake-san. Kushina spends the majority of her time with her Academy classmate. She was the ideal target."

"You are much more intelligent than your age suggests."

"Yes, Sandaime-sama, but you have not asked me to remain behind in order to hear a Genin's theorizing. You want to tell me something. What is it?"

"I believe your exact words were 'if there was something special about her, procedure dictates that I, as her immediate family and potential leverage against her, should have known the instant it became relevant or when I started training to be a shinobi,' correct?"

"Correct."

"Then I believe I owe you an explanation."

I bit back the smart-ass response on the tip of my tongue.

"The Uzumaki clan has all the attributes you described, but there is one that is not as well-known. Uzumaki chakra is especially suited for controlling the tailed beasts." At this, Mito's chakra flared. I wasn't an exceptional sensor, but I was good enough to confirm a second chakra signature beneath Mito's when I concentrated.

The Hokage studied my response.

"You are not surprised by this."

"I already knew," I responded cheekily, but with a completely serious expression.

"Why haven't you mentioned before?"

"You never asked. You did ask if I knew why my sister was targeted. I have no way of knowing the intentions of another country and I have no reason to suspect that Kumo has a tailed beast they need to be contained, thus it wasn't relevant to your question."

"Am I correct in assuming you are not being completely straight with me?" He suggested, an edge in his voice.

"With all due respect, Sandaime-sama, I have not lied to you or deliberately withheld pertinent, important information," I answered in a perfectly conversational tone. "You were the one who lied to me when you assured me that my sister and I would be perfectly safe and free within the walls of Konoha, and you withheld the fact that the other villages are actively seeking my sister and I for traits we have no control over. For the record, my sister was just abducted, there is an active threat to the safety of both my sister and myself. I was promised freedom, yet less than a week after I arrived you gave orders for me to attend the Academy and attempted to manipulate me into becoming nothing more than a common soldier. When I protested this, you authorized me to be brutalized and manipulated until I complied. I am barely nine years old and I can slaughter a dozen civilians, a dozen different ways, in under a minute without shedding a drop of blood, and I didn't want to learn any of it. Please remind me why I should be expected to share every detail I know, when it all is compiled from sources accessible by the public." Well, not accessible to this public. I was very, very proud that I managed to keep a light, friendly tone through the entire rant.

It took the Professor several minutes to dissect the implications of everything I said. I was so glad I practiced that rant in my head on the way back. Mito sat and watched the proceedings, smirking slightly.

"You told your sister about the capabilities of Uzumaki chakra, the tailed beasts, and my status as a Jinchuuriki," Mito stated.

"Correct."

"That is why she kept her teacher between me and her."

"No, it is not. Her reasons are her own and I don't care to share them with a stranger."

"But you are not afraid."

"I am not, Uzumaki-san."

"Are you aware that either—"

"Mito-san!" The Hokage interrupted sharply.

"I am aware that _I_ will become the next Kyuubi Jinchuuriki." I finished her sentence.

Two sharp sets of eyes assaulted me with suspicion.

"Konoha's already ruined my life," I glared back at the Hokage, struggling to keep my voice even as I stood up. "But if this village ruins the life of an idealistic eight-year-old girl, who can't even understand the way of the world she lives in, your petty victory will be decisively overturned."

I let my words sink in. Mito looked away from me and focused on the Hokage with a smirk on her face. I had already won. I could feel it.

"I don't trust you," the Sandaime said bluntly.

"I don't trust you either," I responded. "See? Honestly and forwardness isn't near as difficult as you thought it to be. I am very aware of what I just threatened, _Sandaime-sama_ , but I wholeheartedly meant every word I said." I knew I was going to get in a ridiculous amount of trouble from Sakumo once he found out that I mocked the Hokage, but the expression on the Sandaime's face was completely worth every second.

A long silence punctuated my declaration. Mito and the Hokage were almost immediately locked in a battle of wills. Mito finally broke it.

"You heard his oath as well as I did. As long as you remain honest with and loyal to him, he will return the favor." Mito stated, unwavering. "The boy hates murder, but he loves justice. He may not be able to see the kind of shinobi you can be, but he knows exactly what kind of person you are. I will add your requested seal, but if the boy is lied to or betrayed, it will break. For as long as your will is stronger than his, you will have control. Do not abuse your authority. That is your one and only warning," Mito finished.

I had beaten them both. I knew it, the Hokage knew it, Mito knew it, but I still lost. I had gotten what I wanted, sure, but I couldn't win. Mito stood up and reached towards me. I jerked away from her, terrified and disgusted, but two ANBU appeared on either side of me and held me tightly by the arms. I looked at the Hokage one last time, but he couldn't meet my eye. I didn't struggle, it was no use and would only destroy the little dignity I had left, but I couldn't find the strength to lift my head as the ANBU forced me to walk.

"Kichiro?" Sakumo asked cautiously. I didn't respond. I couldn't even flinch as the door banged open like the sound of a gunshot. "What the hell happened to that kid?" Sakumo roared before the door slammed shut. I couldn't bring myself to appreciate that Sakumo cared.

The ANBU followed Mito down hundreds of stairs, so deep that my ears popped several times on the way. At the very bottom of the staircase, Mito continued while the ANBU turned into a small room and led me to sit on the low bed. They took my kunai pouch and sticks first, which was basically the entirety of my shinobi supplies, and placed them on a table at the foot of the bed. Next, they took off my shoes and shirt.

"You don't deserve this, kid," one of the ANBU said while he unclasped the necklace with my key from around my neck.

"But it doesn't change a damn thing, does it?" I murmured back as he pulled the knot of my hitai-ate loose and laid it atop the key. I was dressed in nothing by my shinobi trousers as they led me out of the room and down the hall. Mito opened a heavy stone door. Inside, the walls, ceiling, and floor was covered with sealing lines. In the center was a stone table. They laid me on it, face up, and locked my wrists and ankles in place.

"Stay strong, kid," the ANBU said before they both left, the door swinging closed like thunder, leaving only me and Mito in the room. I closed my eyes.

"Are you ready?" She asked.

"You're the one who will be signing away your life. I don't see why my answer to your question would make any difference."

I heard an ink bottle opening before Mito's hand wrapped around my left wrist and peeled open my fist. Soft enough that I barely felt it, she drew a seal on the palm of my left hand, then my right, followed by one on my forehead, the soles of both my feet, and then my sternum. One-by-one, she laid her palm over the first five seals and sent a tiny, measured burst of chakra into each of them. She laid her hand over my sternum.

"I know what I think doesn't matter at all to you, but I am sorry." Her chakra rushed through her hands and into the seal, which automatically connected to the other five she drew. I clenched my jaw tightly to avoid screaming as the seals burned themselves into my skin. "That was the first seal. It allows the Hokage to force you to carry out nearly any order he gives you. As long as he is honest with you and does not knowingly and deliberately act for your detriment, the seal will remain. If you attempt to directly disobey orders or carry out any kind of sabotage on them, the seal will stop you. I know you're a rebellious kid. You like pushing the limits. As long as you don't cross any lines, you can say or do whatever you like. The Hokage is now the master of you as a shinobi, not you as a person."

I turned away from her. I didn't care. Without another word, she began to draw the seal for the Kyuubi on my stomach. A few minutes later, she finished. She laid her hands on the seal and activated it. The actual transfer of the Kyuubi was both burned into my memory and burned out of it. I remembered the feel of the Kyuubi's incredibly dense and pervasive chakra filling the room, but nothing else until the transfer was complete and the door popped open with the sound of a Pillsbury® can being twisted open. Through my barely-open eyelids, I watched as the Hokage entered first, wary. He pressed two fingers against my neck and I jerked away from his touch, my throat raw and painful.

"The boy's alive, the sealing was successful. What about Mito-san?"

"She's dead," an ANBU responded emotionlessly.

"Take care of the boy, get him whatever he needs. I need him ready to go back on the field as soon as possible, the seal should completely isolate his chakra from the beast's until he's strong enough to completely control it, so his abilities should be unaltered."

I couldn't help but whimper softly as the ANBU unfastened the restraints and peeled my wrists and ankles out of them, tearing of scabs in the process. He lifted me up like a child. A minute later, he laid me back on a bed, facing the wall.

"He just needs time and rest," one of the ANBU said to another.

No, time and rest wouldn't fix anything. I just wanted it all to go away, at least for a little while. A needle slid into my arm and that's exactly what happened.


	7. Chapter 7 - Part 2

Sakumo only let me lock myself in the room for the night, or what I assumed to be the night. Being drugged skewed my perception of time. An hour or so before he arrived, I had woken up and spent the time staring at the dark seals on the palms of my hands. I wasn't anywhere near good enough at sealing to understand them. The blanket someone had draped over me kept out a good portion of the room's chill, and the hard knot in my stomach, where I knew the Kyuubi resided, warded off the rest.

According to Kushina, any seal could be broken if the person trying to break it was good enough. In time, I could probably figure out how, if the seal would let me in the first place.

"Kichiro?" Sakumo said from the door. "It's morning. I brought someone here to see you."

"Go away."

"Sorry, kid."

"I don't want to talk to anyone."

"Nii-san?" Kushina asked hesitantly.

"Go away." Normally, when I said something less than kind to Kushina, Kichiro would protest, but now, the boy was silent. The little niche in my consciousness where he had set up shop had been replaced. I knew the Kyuubi's seal had destroyed him, considering there was a nice big knot in his place.

"You have ten minutes, Kushina-chan, before you have to leave in order to report for your team meeting."

"Thank you, Hatake-san." Sakumo left and the door closed. "Hokage-sama sent one of the ANBU to tell me what happened, and how you refused to let them seal the Kyuubi inside of me."

"You shouldn't be here."

"Yes, I should be here. Before you say I can't be here, know that I went through all the right channels. One of the ANBU brought me here himself. Or herself, it's hard to tell the difference in those uniforms."

"I don't want to talk to anyone, Kushina."

"You never want to talk to anyone. The only person you don't mind talking to is Hatake-san."

"I don't want to talk to him either."

"Kichiro!" She whined. "You have to talk to someone!"

"Not if I don't want to."

"Can you at least look at me, Kichiro?"

"Go away," I snapped harshly.

"I'm not just going to leave you. You must talk about it with someone, Nii-san. If not me, then Hatake-san, or Minato, or I'm sure Hokage-sama would take time to help you!"

"You're an idiot, Kushina. Sakumo only teaches me because I have something he wants. Minato doesn't give a damn about me, he only cares about you. And the Hokage? That piece of shit wouldn't piss on me if I was on fire, nor would I want him to."

"Don't talk like that, Nii-san! People care about you!"

"Kushina, the only person who really gives a damn that I'm breathing is you. You've done your good deed for the day, now get out!" I rolled onto my stomach and covered my head with my arms.

"What's on your hand?" Kushina demanded.

I clenched both hands to hide the seals.

"Kichiro?"

"Get out, Kushina."

"Look at me, Kichiro!"

"Please, get out."

"What happened, Nii-san?" She begged, pulling at my shoulder.

"Go away!" I shouted at her.

"I'm not going anywhere, you're hurting, Nii-san, I can't leave you like this. Minato will cover for me and Sensei will understand."

"Just go, Kushina."

"I'm not going anywhere."

"Get out!" I screamed. For the briefest of seconds, I felt the Kyuubi's chakra begin to slip from the seal.

The door banged open. "Kushina, go report to your team, that's an order," Sakumo said harshly.

She hesitated, her hand tightening around my shoulder, but obeyed in the end. When her footsteps faded, Sakumo slammed the door.

"What the hell are you thinking, yelling at your _sister_ like that?"

"She's not my sister."

"You haven't meant that for years." Sakumo grabbed my arm and dragged me out of the bed, my knees struck the table at the end of the bed. "Get dressed. I remember what you told me about Madara and if you think the fact that the Kyuubi is sealed in you will just stop his plans then I guess you aren't as smart as I thought." He slapped a pair of black fingerless uniform gloves with metal plates on the back and padding around the knuckles down atop my sandals. I flinched. "I know exactly what the Hokage is responsible for, kid, and I don't give a damn how you feel about it because I know you don't want me to. The team needs to see how well you fight and you need to see _how_ they fight. We have a mission on the warfront in exactly a week."

"The Hokage is letting me out of the village?" I snorted in disbelief.

"You're a medic, kid. Every capable medic-nin is out in the field except you right now. Jiro and I are the only Jōnin in the village. We are fighting a war on several fronts now, so the least you can do is make sure more of us can come back alive. It will be at least a year before the seal weakens enough to allow any of the Kyuubi's chakra to escape and it will take several years before it can mess with your own control, so long as you can keep your emotions under control, which I know for certain you can. Now, _get dressed_."

At that, I found the resolve to pick up my hitai-ate and put it on. Satisfied, he left and I followed five minutes later, pulling the gloves on and clenching my fist with resolve. I had promised I would keep Kushina, Minato, and Sakumo alive years ago. I swore to myself I'd never forget that promise again.

Unfortunately, my self-control was tested the second I stepped onto the training field for the team meeting. Saburo marched up to me the second I arrived.

"You are responsible for the death of Uzumaki Mito."

I glared up at him. "I am not. She was responsible for her own death."

"Yet you're the Jinchuuriki, Uzumaki, not her."

"If you have an objection, take it up with the Hokage, not me. It was a decision made between him and Mito, I had no choice in whether or not the Kyuubi was resealed."

"That's enough, Nara," Sakumo stepped between us before Saburo could respond. "If you have a problem with my student, you take it up with me, not him." The two glared at each other, but after a minute, Saburo stepped back. "Inuzuka, you and Takumi against Shimizu and Nara. Uzumaki and I will watch. Nothing above B-rank."

The two faced off and Sakumo pulled me out of the way.

It didn't take me long to figure out their styles. There was a reason they were put together. Most teams consisted of three Chuunin and a Jōnin. Generally, the only time there was more than one Jōnin on a team was when a Chuunin was promoted and the team decide to stay together and start taking higher-ranked missions proportional to the team skill and rank. This team could probably take any A-rank and come out just fine.

It took less than two minutes for Jiro to incapacitate Saburo and Arata. I wasn't surprised when Saburo was knocked out by Jiro's well-timed backswing. The Inuzuka was only a year or two younger than Sakumo, and Saburo was no older than sixteen. With a complicated flip and the clever placement of an explosive note by Takumi, Jiro managed to lock Arata in a full nelson until he conceded, which only took a second.

Sakumo nudged me after the fight concluded and gestured towards Saburo. "No Genjutsu, Uzumaki," he snapped as I placed my hand on the Chuunin's forehead.

"Talented Genin," Jiro grunted.

"Thanks," I answered. "You turn your toe in when you kick and it offsets your balance."

"Think you can do better?" He challenged.

"He can't, he has the exact same habit," Sakumo slapped the back of my head.

A second later, Saburo woke and slapped my hand away from his forehead then shoved me backwards. I snarled and Jiro grabbed my collar before I could retaliate.

"Shimizu, you're up against Uzumaki."

Jiro deposited me in the center of the training ground like a naughty puppy. "Why Shimizu?" Jiro asked.

"You'll see," Sakumo responded.

"Nara is closer to his skill level."

"Nara is under Uzumaki's Genjutsu, the kid thought he'd be facing Saburo as well."

Jiro raised an eyebrow. "Sneaky kid."

"Not once you learn his tricks."

"How good is he at Genjutsu?"

"He only knows one, and made up another."

"Uzumakis hate Genjutsu as a rule."

"He does, otherwise he could have a few dozen under his belt."

"What do you mean?"

"You know, I can hear you," I interrupted.

Sakumo rolled his eyes. "You have a fight to lose."

"Hey!" I snarled at him. "I'm not that bad!"

"You're a Genin," Arata snorted. "Genin suck as a rule."

"You're on," I hissed and settled into my 'Genin' stance, a purposeful bastardization of the Konoha Taijutsu style.

"Exactly, you can't even stand properly!"

I didn't wait for Sakumo to officially start the match. I lurched forward, purposely overextending my arm. Arata caught it.

"See, that only proves—shit!" The man tossed me backwards as I used a tiny bit of medical jutsu to sever the nerves in his elbow. "What the hell was that, Uzumaki?" He demanded, trying to force his hand to work, but it didn't respond. At least it wouldn't until I fixed it.

"Take him seriously, Shimizu. Remember _I_ am the one who trained him," Sakumo spoke up while Jiro laughed.

"Yeah, but you can't take credit for _my_ tricks!"

"You're on for real this time, Uzumaki."

I used Kawarimi to land in one of the trees to escape Arata's attempt at a Genjutsu. A single hand seal later, a jet of water appeared between us. Three kunai flew through it as I replaced myself with a log across the clearing, only to yelp as I set off a trap I never noticed Shimizu setting and replaced myself again, but not after I managed to set my own trap. Across the clearing was my slacklining rope, just high enough to be out of Arata's reach. I ran into the center of the clearing.

"Give up," I told Arata, my hands in the boar seal. "I've already won."

"Your kid's an idiot," Jiro commented, "But he's got a good water affinity."

"Just watch," Sakumo responded.

"I think you're mistaken, Uzumaki," he said directly behind me. I jumped directly up, grabbing the rope while he grabbed my ankle. With all of my strength and more than a little chakra, I severed the nerves to his hand and threw him into the air. While he flew upwards, cursing, I released the Genjutsu on the rope and my hands flashed through several seals.

"Wind Prison Jutsu!" I cried as my back landed on the rope and I balanced myself. A swirling prison of air formed around Arata as I bounced. "Yield," I ordered as the ninja hovered a few feet above me. Both Saburo and Jiro gaped while Sakumo just laughed.

"I yield," Arata said with a growl.

I lowered the prison to the ground and jumped down in front of a gob smacked Jiro. "It's a wind affinity, but I can see where you're confused, Jiro."

Sakumo slapped the back of my head. "We go by last names here, Uzumaki."

"As far as I know, there's no such thing as a wind prison," Saburo grunted.

"Obviously it exists, Nara, because I just used it."

"Shut up, both of you," Jiro snapped. "You didn't teach him that, Hatake, so what's the story?"

Sakumo smirked.

"Story time is great and all, but I really want to use my hands again. How long will this last, Uzumaki?" Arata interrupted.

"Forever," I smirked as he snarled. "But I can fix it if you'll give me ten minutes," I added quickly.

We all sat down and I started on reconnecting all of Arata's severed nerves while Sakumo told the story.

"The kid figured out water walking shortly after I started him on chakra control exercises. He got arrogant and thought he was the only one who could do it."

I winced. That hadn't been one of my most brilliant days. I wasn't sure how, but I had completely forgotten that walking on water wasn't a miracle in this world.

"He dared me to catch him if I could and went out into the middle of one of the lakes. I was already ticked off that he had ditched training to experiment on his own, so I shunshined out there faster than he could see and trapped him in the water prison and told him if he could get out before sunset I'd start teaching him jutsu, and if he couldn't, there'd be no Ninjutsu for the next year."

"I figured out how!" I added, "But I didn't have the chakra to actually do it then!"

"Yes, he did figure out how, but the agreement was that you had to get out."

"The water prison is inescapable," Saburo claimed.

"Seriously, what is your problem with me?" I demanded, shooting to my feet and leaving Arata sitting with useless hands. "Why do you have to contradict me on everything?"

"You're just a kid with a monster you can't control sealed in your gut!"

"I can control the Kyuubi just fine!"

"It's going to escape and destroy everything and it's all going to be your fault!"

"First, the Kyuubi is not an it, he is a he. Second, I couldn't loosen the seal right now if I tried, so the Kyuubi isn't going to be escaping any time soon. Third, on the very small off-chance that the Kyuubi does escape, it won't be my fault, because I didn't choose to have the Kyuubi resealed."

"What would you know? You're just a whiny brat!"

"Ad hominem now? Are you trying to discredit yourself?"

Faster than I could see, Saburo lunged forward and punched me in the nose. My head whipped backwards and I barely managed to block a second strike to my face, only to have his foot swing around and connect with my ribs. I reinforced them with chakra so they wouldn't break but it still knocked the wind out of me.

I wasn't bad at functioning through pain, per say, but it was one aspect of my training that Sakumo had been reluctant to address. It was a skill generally taught to new Chuunin, not pre-Genin. Considering my body was still developing, it was far too easy to cause an injury and it accidentally heal wrong then create a permanent problem.

I blocked a second strike to my head and leapt over a low kick, only to have another foot come out of nowhere and catch me in the stomach. I took the opportunity to stumble back as far as I could. Jiro, Takumi, and Sakumo had shadows tying them in place and looked terrifyingly furious about it. Arata was unconscious, thus I was completely on my own.

I continued to stumble away from Saburo, trying to pull him far enough away from his jutsu for it to lose effect.

"Mito should have died with the beast inside of her, destroyed it as well—" I managed to make a Genjutsu stick on him. The trick with using Genjutsu is to make sure the victim doesn't notice. I had a knack for imagining the worst possible outcome for myself, especially when stressed, so I channeled that into the Genjutsu and it was especially successful. The only problem was that I ended up living through the image as well, if a bit vicariously. I had figured it out by accident, so it didn't exactly have a name yet. In the image, I missed blocking one of Saburo's strikes to my head. With a laugh and a handful of obscenities, he slit my throat, which was disgusting and terrifying. The Genjutsu didn't manipulate him, specifically, just specific aspects of his surroundings. I moved the images of the test of the team a few feet forward and to the right, just in time, because Saburo threw two kunai that would have gone through Arata and Takumi's head an instant later. I felt increasingly sick as I watched him march up to Jiro. I couldn't hear what he said, my head was ponding from the beating, but Saburo snarled in Jiro's face and then sliced his throat as well. He moved on to Sakumo as well. It was only when Saburo released that shadow jutsu and Sakumo killed him. Like the snap of a finger, he was dead. No fanfare, gloats, or even warning. Sakumo killed his former teammate with a kunai through the temple.

I couldn't tear my eyes from Saburo's crumpled body. It was one thing that the Kiri nin was attempting to kill children. I didn't regret his death, but Saburo couldn't even fight back, he was trapped in my Genjutsu.

"Oh god, he's dead," I gasped.

Jiro grabbed my arm and turned me away from the scene. "Hey kid, look at me, not him, okay?" I looked over my shoulder and Takumi stepped in the way. "Uzumaki, focus on me first." Takumi nudged me around as Jiro squatted down to my height.

I turned to face the Jōnin.

"Good. Just to be sure, your Genjutsu, it showed him killing us first, right? He slit your throat, put a kunai through both Takumi and Arata's heads and then slit my throat and Hatake's, right? Just nod or shake your head."

I nodded. "How—"

"I'm a Jōnin, kid, of course I can figure out what your Genjutsu was. Next thing, Arata needs your help, okay, so Takumi is going to take you to help him, alright? Focus on helping him."

I nodded again and Jiro slipped my hand into Takumi's collar, which was actually the dog's hitai-ate.

A few seconds later, Takumi nudged me towards Arata and I went to kneel beside him, healing on autopilot. It wasn't difficult, I had healed Arata's type of injuries thousands of times. Every time I tried to turn around, a mass of dark fur obscured my view and Takumi started licking my face until I turned back towards my work. By the time I finished the actual healing, I didn't have enough chakra to wake him up. The Genjutsu was a C-rank jutsu at best for chakra cost, but the complexity I put into it had exhausted me. I slumped backwards against Takumi, too tired to care when the dog curled around me. My head settled in the nook behind his shoulder. I didn't sleep, the ache from the bruises Saburo gave me was too strong, so I listened. Takumi let out a plaintive whine and curled tighter around me when Sakumo crouched beside us.

"Looks like Takumi adopted your kid, Hatake," Jiro laughed. "You ain't getting him back for a while."

"That's fine, he'll come back to me in the end."

"All kids like dogs more than people."

Sakumo laughed. "Anyways, the Genjutsu he used, was it what we thought?"

"Yes. The kid's brilliant, deducing his intentions and playing along with Saburo to distract him just enough to get help, but not enough to distract him and make him realize it was a Genjutsu. Where did he think of something like that?"

"Most of the time I can tell what he's thinking, but sometimes it's like he's living in an entirely different world. Hell if I know what's going through his head then."

"Right. I'm assuming Saburo was right about him being a Jinchuuriki."

"Yes."

My body may have fallen asleep, but my mind was perfectly alert.

"You were supposed to be debriefed on the situation last night with the other Jōnin."

"Tsume and Kuromaru fell ill last night so only Takumi went and we never had a chance to talk since its classified and they were both up all night."

"Are they fine now?"

"They'll be fine in a few days, nothing time won't fix, I'm more worried about her Genin team. They're set to leave the same time as us and unlike Kichiro, she hasn't had her nerve tested in an actual fight. She's still asking to be apprenticed to someone. Apparently her entire Academy class trembles in fear of your student and she wants that kind of fear associated with her name."

"You want to apprentice her to a Jōnin, don't you?"

"She's good enough to have been apprenticed, but I wanted her to be on a Genin team because I thought the peace would last until she was a Chuunin."

"And most apprentices are left in the village during war to preserve the styles of their master."

"Exactly. It was a bad call."

"Don't beat yourself up over it, we both know her Jōnin sensei and he'll take care of her. Besides, I made a bad call not moving Saburo to a different team when Kichiro joined. We suspected him of being a traitor and I never should have risked any Genin like that. Everyone makes mistakes."

"Hokage-sama put our team together to be sure of Saburo, are we still staying a team?"

"Yes, we're a mobile support unit."

"So we won't be back at all for a few months."

"Not unless one of use dies or is injured beyond Kichiro's ability to heal."

"Which is highly unlikely, at least for our team."

"It is."

"You were on the front lines in the last war, right?"

"I was. You were just barely young enough to be kept from the front lines."

"You hated it."

"I did."

"And now, you're going back."

"I am, but now, the difference is that I'm not fighting for myself, I don't have to prove my strength to anyone. I'm fighting for others, something bigger, someone tangible." Sakumo's hand settled on my head, then it was gone. "Come on, let's take care of our real teammates."

Takumi whined again as Sakumo picked me up.

"You have your own pack at home, no need to adopt every single stray you meet," Sakumo scolded the dog. "Inuzuka, take Shimizu home, Uzumaki would've said something before passing out if he hadn't finished healing. Go home yourself, be with your family. I have a feeling we're going to be leaving sooner than scheduled because of this incident."


	8. Chapter 8

Sakumo dropped me off at my apartment where I spent the rest of the day sleeping for real. In the middle of the night I woke and found a note Sakumo left on my table that said our team was leaving the next day, early in the morning. I was very glad that the people who ran the shinobi shops were all former shinobi and the only time their shops were closed were during festivals. Kushina never came home that night, which wasn't unusual. Sometime in the past week, Minato had been dismissed from the orphanage in light of his pending shinobi status. If it wouldn't have been so awkward, I would have just suggested he move in so I didn't have to check the training grounds in the middle of the night to make sure both of them made it somewhere safe for the night.

I packed up everything I needed for my extended mission and placed it in a small bag on the table. Frankly, it was nothing more than a handful of items: a change of clothes, a tiny kit to patch them up if they ripped, a cloak to sleep under (tents were a big shinobi no-no because they restricted movement in case of an ambush), a medic kit, and a water canteen. I laid my sticks beside my bag, as well as my kunai pouch, in which carried senbon instead of kunai.

Thanks to some clever sealing by Kushina, I could fit as many senbon as I could afford into my kunai pouch, which was a few thousand, considering the standard price of senbon was ridiculously low. In my opinion, the shop owner though he could lure me in to buy more sharp pointy things if it seemed like he was willing to offer great deals. Kushina and I were two of his more regular customers, though Kushina only ever bought sealing supplies and a few kunai while I only bought senbon (most shinobi tried their best to avoid creating any habits until they were strong enough to defend against an attack while participating in said habit).

At the same time, old habits die hard. In my old life, I was the oddball that operated on a cash-only basis, unless it couldn't be avoided. I never knew why I got into the habit, but I just did. So, every time Kushina and I received the monthly orphan's stipend and I received my rather substantial pay from the hospital, withdrew the money I would needed from the bank to pay bills such as the rent and utilities, then divvyed the rest into three jars, which Kushina stuck into a secure storage seal in the back of the fridge. One was for food and the rest was split evenly between two jars as spending money for the two of us. Both of us were rather frugal spenders, so even though I never actually looked at the account balance, I had a feeling it was significant. The village had an impressive credit system, but I didn't use it and Kushina didn't understand it well enough to utilize.

I pulled out my jar and put some of it in a small money pouch for the mission and dropped it into my pack. About half of what was left I shoved into my pocket and what remained went into Kushina's jar, I certainly wouldn't need the money considering I'd probably be roughing it for most of the remainder of the war.

I wrote down the access information for the bank account in case Kushina forgot, stuck the paper in the top of her jar, and shoved everything back into the fridge. With part of my money in my pocket, I set out to my frequented shinobi supply shop to buy as many ration bars as I could carry.

"You're a Genin now, aren't you Uzumaki?" The shop owner said as I walked inside, without looking up from the ledger he was writing in. I stood on tiptoes to see over the counter and placed my money on it. "I'm heading out to the war front tomorrow. I need the indefinite mission package of rations and a standard mission set of senbon."

"Genin aren't allowed on the warfront, kid."

"I'm a medic. We go where needed, regardless of rank."

"I'm not trying a sales pitch this time kid, but you need more than senbon and rations for a mission out of the village."

"I have everything I need."

"Do you have wire and at least a few kunai?"

"I don't need—"

"You need at least a few blades, kid, especially since you're a Genin. You can't use your sensei's all the time like in training."

"Medic, I'm a medic."

"Do you have your kit and a change of clothes?"

"Yes."

"A mat and blanket."

"I have a cloak."

"Canteen, bowl, and chopsticks?"

"Canteen, I have, but why would I need a bowl and chopsticks?"

"You can't live off rations, kid, trust me, you'll get sick of them very quick, and I can't picture you eating your food off the ground." The man placed a small metal bowl on the counter with a pile of rations and two rolls of senbon, then took part of the sum I had dropped on the counter. "Consider it a first mission discount." He added three kunai and a spool of ninja wire to the pile of goods. "I know you don't care for blades, kid, but you might need them for more than stabbing people and wire is always useful. Come back alive. If not for me, then for your sister. My business might be able to survive without your senbon obsession, but your sister won't and I won't survive losing her sealing obsession."

We shared a wry smile as he swept everything into a paper bag and handed it to me.

I was about to leave when he finished. "And take that extra money with you on your mission. You never know when you might need it. The bowl is also a convenient place to stick your money and canteen, just a tip."

I nodded once and dashed out the door. In five minutes, I was back home and finished packing. I ate a little and noticed that I had about two hours left before I was required to meet up with the team. I knew I couldn't leave without apologizing to Kushina.

So I knocked on Minato's door, my mission supplies slung over my shoulder.

He answered and stepped outside, obviously unhappy with me.

"You make Kushina-chan cry," he told me bluntly. That was one of the reasons I genuinely liked the kid. He said things as they were and expected everyone around him to do the same.

"I know. I want to apologize. May I please?"

He studied me for a long minute. "Kushina wasn't crying because you were mean."

I raised an eyebrow skeptically. "Really?"

"She was angry you wouldn't tell her what is wrong."

"Well, it's all better now."

"Liar." Scratch that, his bluntness was one of the reasons I _didn't_ like the kid.

"I have less than two hours to report for a mission on which I could be out of the village for several years. Please allow me to speak with my sister."

Finally, after some contemplation, he stepped aside. "I'm going for a walk. Kushina-chan is working on a project for Sensei, so she's real tired."

He opened the door for me and left. I entered the boy's familiar apartment and left my bag by the door.

"Kushina?" I called into the apartment.

"Nii-san?" She answered. After a second, she appeared from the main room/kitchen area. She gestured me towards her and vanished inside the room. I followed, dancing over the miscellaneous items scattered in the entryway.

Kushina sat in the center of the floor, a sealing array spread out in front of her. I sat down at her side and squinted at the seal. I wasn't great at sealing, but I knew more than the average ninja.

"Sensei gave me this seal to see if I could figure it out, but it's so complex that I can't figure it out. It's like there's a piece missing or someone took an entire layer out."

I had perused our personal library hundreds of times. While Kushina methodically worked her way through the library, I picked random topics that interested me and learned until I got bored. I had looked into several seals whose names sounded familiar, one of which was the Shiki Fūjin, or the Dead Demon Consuming Seal. I scowled as I recognized the array in front of me.

"You recognize it," she stated.

"Yeah, it's a suicide seal," I answered her. She jerked away from it. "It summons the Shinigami and you can seal practically anything, but in exchange it takes your soul."

"What's it called?"

"The Shiki Fūjin," I answered. "Your sensei should have never given you this, it's a forbidden jutsu and I don't know how he got his hands on it."

"Alright, I know more about seals than you, how did you solve this one before me?" She demanded, rolling the seal up.

"I saw it before in our library."

"Oh, I thought you said it was forbidden. Why did you look at it?"

"I didn't know it was forbidden at the time."

"Well, Sensei will be impressed, thanks."

"I'm sorry about what I said yesterday."

"It's alright, you were upset."

"No, it wasn't alright."

"So are you going to tell me what was really wrong?"

"How much did the ANBU tell you?"

"Not much, just that you argued with Hokage-sama and threatened to kidnap me if they sealed the Kyuubi into me, and you volunteered instead, so they sealed the Kyuubi inside of you that night, they didn't even give you time to come to terms with the fact you were going to become a Jinchuuriki."

"A bit more than that happened."

"I figured. Do you want to tell me?"

"No, I don't, but I should." I gathered my thoughts for a moment. "After everyone left, it was only me, Mito, and the Hokage. Before the Kyuubi even came up, I got into an argument with the Hokage and said some things that could be considered treasonous."

"It couldn't have been that bad, Nii-san," Kushina placated.

"I don't regret anything I said, but it had some pretty severe repercussions, but I'll get to that in a minute. It wasn't until after I had said my peace that the Kyuubi was brought up. They were going to choose you from the very beginning, though I'm not exactly sure why, especially considering I'm older and stronger because of it."

Kushina slipped her arms around my waist and hugged me tightly. I patted her on the head.

"I told them I'd defect and take you with me if they sealed it into you and offered myself as an alternative. It wasn't long after that Mito resealed the Kyuubi, but she added another seal."

Kushina interrupted with a loud curse.

"You're eight, you don't need to be cussing," I reprimanded.

"Yeah, yeah, you've been cussing since forever, which seal did she use?" Her arms tightened around me.

"I don't know exactly but—"

"Are the seals still visible?"

"Yes." I pulled off my gloves and showed her the seals on my hands.

"If Uzumaki Mito wasn't already dead, I would kill her," Kushina snarled as I put the gloves back on. "Yesterday you said the Hokage didn't care about you at all; the extra seal was his idea, wasn't it?"

"It was—" I barely managed to catch her around the waist as she tried to race out of the room. "As much as I hate him right now, you're not going to attempt to assassinate the Hokage."

She swung her fists in the direction of the Hokage tower as I used a tiny bit of chakra to attach myself to the floor when she tried to drag me out the door. I didn't let go until she had calmed down, which didn't take long.

Unfortunately, the second I let go of her, she decided I needed a hug. I landed on my back with an eight-year-old around my neck and I wasn't going to be getting up anytime soon. I awkwardly returned to patting her head.

"There's another thing I have to tell you," I said after a minute. Her arms tightened and I thought she was going to strangle me. "Choking!"

"Oh, sorry!" Her arms loosened just enough for me to breathe, but she made no indication she was going to get off. I knew better than to not let her have her way.

"I'm heading out to the war in a bit more than an—choking!"

This time, she didn't let go and I had to substitute myself with a pillow to wheeze in a few breaths. When she re-tackled me, she pinned my arms to my side, not that I needed my hands to do a substitution. "I don't want you to go out to the war! I've heard awful stories!"

"It is horrible, but I'm going to help people, not hurt them, alright?"

She seemed like she was going to let me go for a minute, but then her grip tightened and she buried her face in my chest. "I love you, Nii-san."

"I love you too, Kushina-chan," I responded. For the first time, I felt like I actually meant it. I sat up and pulled her next to me, my arm around her shoulders. I heard Minato's front door creak open as he quietly announced his presence. There were two other sets of footsteps with him, one adult and one child, though I could barely hear the adult's.

Minato turned the corner and we both stood up, though I didn't let go of Kushina. "Kichiro-nii, this is the rest of me and Kushina's Genin team. You already know Sensei, and our teammate is Shimizu Aoi, he's ten."

"Uzumaki Kichiro," I introduced myself politely.

"You're the bastard who beat up my Nii-san and killed his teammate."

There was a very awkward silence following that statement.

"Is insulting whomever you speak with a family trait?" I asked calmly.

Aoi glared at me.

"I guess you're consciously insulting then. For the record, your brother is a Tokubetsu Jōnin and I'm a Genin medic. Make it a lesson not to ever underestimate your opponent and to know your opponent can set traps as well. As for the teammate, he tried to kill the entire team, including your brother. He got what was coming to him."

"Kushina-chan, I don't like your brother," Aoi said bluntly.

"Nii-san, will you beat up the arrogant prick for me, please?" Kushina asked.

I frowned. "Since when have I beaten up a squirt for you?"

"You have to start somewhere."

"Why am I here?" Jiraiya demanded. "I know all of you brats already."

"Kichiro-nii is going to the warfront and I don't want him too," Minato answered. I was more curious as to know when Minato decided I was his brother as well.

"Well, I can't do anything about that, his team leader outranks me."

"Yeah, but you're the Hokage's student. He's got to listen to you."

Jiraiya shook his head. "Kid, as soon as I have the three of you trained up enough not to die, we're joining him. I'm sorry. Training starts at noon." He left and Aoi followed him. The moment the door closed, Minato fell to his knees in shock. Kushina went over to kneel beside him. I looked at Kushina, confused. Minato shouldn't have even been in a real fight before, much less have an idea how terrifying war could be.

"His parents were spies in Suna. They were caught and killed six years ago and the uncle he was living with died in the brief war with Suna afterwards."

"And the entire war lasted only ten days," I finished.

In my old life, I worked in the Army communications, but I only used that job title so no one freaked out when they saw me in uniform because I was actually a Casualty Notification Officer at the height of the Afghanistan war.

I knew firsthand how much damage a war could cause.

Kneeling down, I took Minato's hands in mine. "Listen, Minato, you're a Genin, Kushina is a Genin and Jiraiya is your team leader, right?"

He nodded.

"Your sensei is very strong, you know that, right?"

He nodded again.

"He'd never, ever let you die, right?"

Minato hesitated, but after a second, nodded.

"So you and Kushina are going to be fine." I concluded confidently. "It's going to be scary as hell; you're never going to forget the bodies you're going to see, the screaming and crying you're going to hear, the blood and rot and smoke you'll smell, the bile you'll taste when you experience all of this, and the physical pain. You're not going to want to forget it. War is a horrible thing, but it dishonors those who fight and die in it to forget them, to forget our war, both our allies and our enemies. I won't try and comfort you, because by the end of it, everything will be hollow words, nothing more than words." I took Kushina's hands as well. "People are going to die, some of them will be friends, but the two of you are going to stay together, you're both going to survive. You're going to survive this war, you're going to remember it, and you're going to come home and live in spite of it. I know it and I want you to promise me you'll live after it."

"But what about you?" Kushina asked. "Are you gonna survive and come back and live too?"

I looked down. "I don't know, but promise me you'll both come back and live."

"I promise." Minato looked up and smiled at me, resolved.

"I-I promise," Kushina echoed.

"I love you both. Goodbye."

At that, I stood up to leave and both kids jumped forward to hug me. After a minute, I pulled away and left, picking up my bag on the way out and not looking back.


	9. Chapter 9

I walked into the briefing room the second the clock reached reporting time. I would have been a few minutes early, but Hatake had decided that we would be briefed in the Jōnin briefing room and the security didn't believe I was supposed to be there until Dog came down to make sure I found the place.

"My brother really hates you, Uzumaki," Shimizu greeted, oddly amicable.

"I wonder whose fault that was," I responded sarcastically and took the only open seat as Hatake pushed himself off the wall and spread our mission scroll out on the table.

"Let's focus on the mission," Hatake interrupted Shimizu's response. I skimmed over the mission as Hatake pulled down a map of the shinobi nations. "As of this morning, Konoha is at war with all of the other shinobi nations, which means we are fighting a war on four major fronts. We are one of several groups who will be running to every front and determining who needs the most help, as well as providing temporary relief where it is needed, primarily through medical care." He looked directly at me. "Uzumaki, you have specific orders to conserve your chakra as much as possible, except when healing, and then you are to do everything you possibly can to enable our shinobi to return to the battlefield. For the most part, you will be partnered with Dog when we stop to assist and assess the situations. Shimizu, you will be interrogating whomever the teams have captured for information, which we will relay to the messenger teams. Inuzuka and I will be providing relief on the battlefront."

"Will I be healing on-field or on-base?"

"Both. You are currently the only one on this team who hasn't been truly tested in combat, recent events not in consideration. If something, anything, goes wrong or even takes a step in that direction, you are to pull out immediately. Every country is fighting on multiple fronts, but Konoha has four while the other countries have two at most, Kumo could potentially have three soon, but that isn't certain. The ability to put shinobi back in the field is what might be the only thing to ensure our survival, and to do that, we need medics."

I nodded.

"Verbal affirmation, Uzumaki."

Flushing with a bit of embarrassment, I spoke. "Orders acknowledged."

"The mission starts on the Suna front. We'll be moving in the basic diamond formation until we reach the yellow line." Hatake traced the line on the map. "Uzumaki, you will take the client position as our medic and a Genin. Dog, take rear. Shimizu, take left, and Inuzuka take point. I'll take right. After the yellow line, we'll be using the spearhead formation. Dog will take point and Uzumaki will take his tail. Shimizu, you'll be the right and Inuzuka will take left. I'll take the rear and stay about a hundred meters back. When we reach the red line, we'll start the sphere formation." He pointed on the map. "I'll take the ground, Uzumaki take top. Shimizu, Inuzuka, and Dog will be on rotation. Information is being severely compartmentalized, so only team leaders know where the border stations will be located. All except Uzumaki will have a basic disorientation Genjutsu placed on them by me at all times in order to keep these locations secret."

"Why will I have base locations and not the others?"

"First, the others can determine their location if we are separated and I drop the Genjutsu, you have not even been outside the village. Second, in case of separation, you return to last base visited at top speed and stop for no one, not even if I give you direct orders otherwise. When you arrive at base, you will deliver this to the team leader." He handed me a small, grey bead with a hole to lace onto my necklace that now had dog tags as well as my apartment keys on it. As I put it on my necklace, I noticed that the bead was actually white, but the tiny, black sealing lines turned it grey at a distance. "Upon taking it, the bead should turn red for a moment. If it does not, you are to run back to Konoha at top speed with every evasion tactic you know and head straight to the emergency returns. Take no chances."

"Acknowledged."

"Good. We all know the basic Jōnin identity confirmations, but we'll need individual confirmation as well. Request for confirmation will be Uzumaki's 'Genin' stance. Dog, you'll just sneeze, both for individual confirmation and request. Uzumaki, shift to your toes. Shimizu, switch to a reverse grip on your kunai. Inuzuka, shake your hair out of your eyes. I'll clap once. Is there anything else?"

"Kill or capture enemies?" Inuzuka asked.

"Capture if possible, kill if necessary. Uzumaki is trained in applying Fūinjutsu to prisoners. Shimizu will be conducting on-site interrogations."

I covered my mouth at the thought. I happened to be one of a half-dozen people in the village that showed any sort of interest in sealing and because of that, I was automatically in charge of nighttime security and all prisoners obtained. I didn't mind the former, it made me feel useful, but the latter made me sick to my stomach.

"Any other questions?" Hatake asked. When no one answered, he dismissed the team to rendezvous in ten minutes at deployment point six. "Uzumaki, remain."

They all filed out and Sakumo sat down beside me.

"You alright kid?"

I wanted to tell him to buzz off, but I knew it wouldn't be appropriate, not now.

"You've only been in this world for two years, Kichiro, you can't be fine with what you would consider torture and murder as well as knowing your sister will soon be participating in it even though she's only eight."

"Her and Minato were supposed to be ten when they graduated," I said. "Something changed because I'm here and I don't know what. This war is in the wrong place. I-I told them they would survive, I said they would be fine but I just don't know anymore."

"They'll be fine, I'm sure of it. You're the only Genin allowed beyond the yellow line."

"That's a death sentence and you know it. I may be on a team with three Jōnin, but I'm still a Genin who will be targeted first, simply because of my size."

"You may be a Genin now, but you can keep up with Chuunin twice your age. You may not have age and experience, but you have the skill and creativity to survive. Remember, just yesterday, you managed to beat Shimizu and you tricked the traitor. Trust me, by the end of this war, you'll be a Tokubetsu Jōnin at the very least."

I managed a tiny smile. "Aren't the Chuunin exams suspended during wartime?"

"Inter-village Chuunin exams are, but Konoha still has theirs, even if it's just to boost morale and provide a bit of entertainment. You won't be participating because you're so far beyond your Genin peers, I'll push your field promotion through as soon as I can. You're going to survive if I have anything to say about it."

"And if you don't have a say?"

Sakumo couldn't answer that. "Come on, we have a mission."

It was a good thing Hatake brought me to the rendezvous point, because I had absolutely no idea where to go.

I could feel my chakra reserves growing by the day our mission actually began. From the moment we reached the border, I was healing at least a dozen major injuries per day. While I wasn't specifically trained, I had no choice but to counter poisons in nearly every injury, at least for as long as we were on the Suna front. The handful of other medics I encountered on the Suna front had no idea what to do about it and dozens had died before I could reach them. Without the general knowledge of chemical compounds and bioweapons from my world, they all would have been sunk. Just like every boy with a passing interest in history, I had read countless books on WWI and WW2. After the Ebola outbreak, I had touched up on the science behind viruses, which led to a passing interest in poisons, that somehow turned towards venoms and immunities. With that knowledge, I figured out a way to simulate the production of antibodies and the creation of memory cells in the lymph nodes to create immunities.

After the first week of practice, I managed to figure out a way to immunize someone against the most common poisons, even if they'd never been hit with it. I wasn't sure if it would last more than a few months, or if I had even made the memory cells, but everyone assured me that every little bit helped.

I tried to teach the other medics how to do it, but quickly found out that while antidotes and antivenom were a thing, but no one knew how or why they worked, thus the development process was trial and error. The little fact quickly frustrated me and when I tried to explain the whole process to the sixth medic, I found that there just weren't the words to describe antigens and the process for making antibodies. Hell, I didn't even remember all the English words for it, I just got the gist of the process and used the magic chakra to speed it up, whether it be healing or artificial immunization. Inuzuka suggested that I write down as much as I could and they would find a way to get it back to Konoha for others to study and find a way to explain.

I felt a little bit guilty that I was stealing some of the renown Tsunade would gain in combating Suna, but not so much as to keep me from milking it when I could. Occasionally, I could be an S-ranked troll, and when the news of my existence started to reach the bases ahead of us, I managed to persuade Hatake to let me run to one of the nearby villages to buy some sort of trademark. After our second week on the Suna front, he let me. Accompanied by Dog, I made the dash and ducked into the first seamstress shop I found and ordered a haori. Frankly, it was a joke only I would get and probably would never become funny to anyone else, but it was a very effective way to keep my spirits up and help me pull out a smile to calm the people I healed.

The haori was a bright green with black flames around the hem and had 'medic' written in bold, black kanji down the back. Yes, it was the future Yondaime Hokage's signature haori with a new color scheme and it cracked me up every time I saw it from the back. Shimizu thought I was insane, Inuzuka and Dog ignored the quirk, and Hatake would send me looks that demanded an explanation as soon as we were somewhere secure.

Maybe because it was earlier in the war, maybe because that front of the war was better off, but things got much darker once we hit the Iwa front. On the Suna front, most injuries were minor, if severely exacerbated by poison. In the Iwa front, there was a triage system and the ground permanently stained with blood. Losing patients didn't bother me because I knew every person I helped would have been worse off anyways. Across the entire Iwa front, most of the sleep I received was when we traveled between the camps. Generally, I rode on Dog, but occasionally, Hatake would carry me on his back. I objected to the rides at first, but quickly discovered that I just couldn't keep up with the speed we needed to travel.

Shimizu generally dealt with defenses around the camps while Hatake and Inuzuka provided relief on the battlefront and Dog accompanied me. Periodically, Hatake forced the team into mandatory rest times. Even though I was almost entirely sure Hatake knew, he didn't say anything when I snuck out to help those in the triage who were placed in the category of being too far gone to be worth helping. In total, I only managed to actually save about twenty of nearly a hundred I attempted to save, the rest, I did my best to ease their pain. It wasn't until we were nearly to the Kumo front when I noticed Hatake following me when I snuck out in the middle of rest times.

The front with Kumo was an offensive operation instead of defensive, so on the Kumo front, the team was effectively operating in enemy territory and the injuries were much less severe. The Kiri front was the same. By the time we finished the mission, it had been nearly five months and Hatake brought us back to Konoha at top speed. He dismissed the team once we passed the gate, but made sure to bring me to the door of my apartment.

He left to report to the Hokage.

On the small table, there was a note from Kushina saying she had been on a mission for the past few days and was due back within the next few days. There was also about two more pages summarizing what had been going on for the months I was gone, but I was too exhausted to read them. Until the apartment door closed behind me, I didn't realize how much the paranoia of a potential attack at any second was effecting me. My mission pack fell someplace in the kitchen area and I collapsed on my bed without even taking off my shoes. I was asleep in seconds.

(-_-)

What seemed like ten seconds later, I was awoken by the distinct urge to eat something and relieve myself. I made several packages of only food in the apartment, ramen, relieved myself, showered, then collapsed back on the bed. This cycle repeated twice before someone banged loudly on the door. I was still so exhausted I could barely walk straight, so it took me far longer than I would have liked to open the door.

"You're supposed to report to the hospital within twenty-four hours of returning from a mission, kid, you haven't been seen for thirty-six. What happened?" Sakumo asked, more than a little worried.

"Sorry," I mumbled. "Sandman did hi' job prop'ly 'or once." I had spent at least two-thirds of the mission staving off sleep with the jutsu I had decided to never share unless absolutely necessary.

"Sandman? Kichiro, was someone in your apartment?" Sakumo's voice gained a panicked edge.

"Not th' I know o'," I responded.

"Who's Sandman?"

"Myth'cal 'ude who 'elps people slee' an' sen's goo' 'reams." I listed to one side and after a delayed wondering of why I didn't fall, I realized I was leaning against the wall, while Sakumo did a security check on my apartment.

I yelped when Sakumo sent a jolt of chakra into my body to dispel a nonexistent Genjutsu.

"No' cool, man, no' cool," I grumbled.

"Security code, now."

I rolled my eyes and rattled off the code.

"Who or what is Sandman?"

"A story."

I was sure Sakumo was shaking his head at me. "Come on, you have a physical you should have been at this morning."

"'M coming." I stumbled forward, but Sakumo stopped me.

"It may be nearly spring, but you still need more than a pair of shorts if you don't want to catch a chill."

I didn't even have the mental faculties to flush in embarrassment. When it took me too long to stagger across the room, Sakumo snagged a shirt from the floor somewhere and pulled it over my head, followed by strapping the closest pair of shoes, my civilian sandals, on my feet. I wasn't working at the hospital so there wasn't a basic dress code for me to follow. About a quarter of the way there, I stopped abruptly.

"I look like a civilian," I said.

"Yes, you do."

"The seals—"

"Kichiro, let's just get you to the hospital. Since everyone knows you're a shinobi, a few seals will be fine." Sakumo put a hand on my back and guided me forward.

"Wait, why'm I goin' to the ho'pital, 'm not hurt." I dug my heels into the ground.

"You were just on an extended, foreign mission and someone needs to make sure you're not sick in any way, it's procedure."

"Okay."

"Nii-san? Nii-san! Nii-san!" Kushina's voice rose above the murmur of the streets. A moment later, a blur of red collided with me and it was only Sakumo's support that kept me from cracking my head on the cobblestones. "Is it true? Is what Tsunade-nee-chan said true? Are you as big of a hero as they say you are? Did you really show all the medic nin how to stop all of Suna's poisons? Did you? Did you?"

"Let him go, Kushina-chan. He's only got back from an extremely exhausting mission yesterday that had me laid up for nearly as long as he's been," Sakumo said as my knees started to buckle and I wondered how I managed to run at top speed all the way from the Kiri border if I was still this exhausted a-day-and-a-half later.

"Then why isn't he sleeping?" She challenged, pulling back and putting my arm around her shoulders. I was rather annoyed that she had grown at least two inches, judging by the fact that she now seemed taller than me, but that was probably because I wasn't exactly sure I was upright.

"He needs to go to the hospital first."

"Did he get hurt? Why didn't you go to the hospital sooner?"

"He's fine, it's just procedure after a mission in enemy territory."

"You went across the lines!" She squawked. Just like that, I felt like I was flying as Kushina lifted me onto her back and took off. I'm sure I fell back asleep on the way, because I didn't wake up until someone else laid me on a bed.

I jerked my arm out of their grip and tumbled off the bed, landing on someone who grunted. I quickly rolled off them and struggled to focus on the redhead in front of me.

"Nii-san? You alright?" The girl asked as I blinked.

"He'll be fine, just exhausted as far as I can tell," someone else, a woman, soothed. "Come on, kiddo, up on the bed. Sakumo should have brought you straight to the hospital with your level of exhaustion." A strong hand grabbed my arm and pulled me to my feet and I clutched at the wrist for balance as the world started to spin and a splitting headache clawed its way to the forefront of my mind.

"Too long isolating adenosine and melatonin buildup and stimulating epinephrine production." I mumbled, one of my knees giving out.

"I only understood half of that, kiddo," she responded kindly as she laid me back down on the bed. I blinked up at the woman leaning over me, her hand over my forehead, the green glow turning the rest of the room odd colors.

"I 'member you, you're Tsunade."

"That's Tsunade-sama to you, twerp." Her voice gained a bit of an edge. "I know you've been messing with your own body and it doesn't look like experimentation so what the hell are you doing and how do I fix it?"

"Can't fix, 'm fine, just need to sleep it off. I played with adenosine and melatonin for too long an' now 'm paying for it. Just need fluids and calories. Can I sleep?"

"Fine, I'll give you an IV, but you better have answers for me when you wake up."

"Mm." As she pulled her hand away from my forehead, I let myself just fall back asleep.

(-_-)

When I woke up actually rested and somewhat refreshed, if lethargic, a note on the table beside me said it had been slightly less than two days since I arrived in the hospital. It also contained orders to open the room for someone who needed it and report to Tsunade. I ripped out the IV and quickly healed it before I dripped blood on anything other than my shirt.

In five minutes, I had prepped the room for whomever would need it next and signed it open at the end of the hall.

Ten minutes later, I managed to locate Tsunade in the shinobi medic breakroom. She sat in the corner on one of the sofas, her head in her hands.

I knocked softly on the door. "Tsunade?"

"Adenosine and melatonin. Mind explaining?" She patted the cushion beside her. I sat down in one of the chair a few meters away, just to be contrary. I felt strange without my fighting sticks, but it was a comfortable strange. "It's not in any book you've read and I've been keeping a close eye on you since you started training."

"No, it's, um, something I made up?"

"Really." She stated, finally looking at me. "I don't take bullshit from anyone, what makes you think I'll swallow yours."

I tried a different approach. "Adenosine and melatonin are chemicals in the brain which build throughout the day and causes tiredness and helps facilitate sleep. I wanted to figure out a way to stave off exhaustion, so I did. The only problem is that adenosine is generally broken down during sleep and after staving it off for however many months I was on mission, it took a very, very long time to break down and I didn't realize that until a few days ago because I had only used it once to hold off sleep for a few hours. Before you ask, I'm not teaching the technique to anyone else because it's so easily abused and no one else has both the pure-blooded Uzumaki vitality as well as medical experience to fall back on if something goes wrong."

Tsunade was very unhappy about that last little bit. "You're withholding information from a superior."

"I practically went into a coma afterwards for almost four full days, think about how many people, who don't have the famous Uzumaki resilience, could end up dying after the war is over if I release this technique."

"I'm not angry about your refusal to share, I'm angry you attempted a new medical technique without supervision."

"I know what I'm doing."

"You're just a kid—"

"You never learn anything useful by playing it safe."

"You sound like Orochimaru."

"Don't compare me to that creep," I spat.

After a long silence, Tsunade decided to ignore my outburst.

"No more unsanctioned experiments, got it?"

"I'm not going to make a promise like that. I've already been bitten once and I learned my lesson when dealing with _him_."

"Who?"

"The Hokage." I stood up and left while she was still reeling in shock.

I made my way back to my apartment first to clean up the mess I probably left when I came back from my mission. When I unlocked and opened the door, I found Kushina had already cleaned up and was sitting at the table contemplating the dregs of her instant ramen and cementing my opinion that kids were entirely incapable of feeding themselves, no matter hypocritical that sounded. I picked up the cup, noting that it had long ago turned cold, and dumped the thing in the trash. I guessed it to be sometime around dinner. I was about to suggest we go somewhere nice to eat when I noticed my freshly-washed haori on the table as the focus of Kushina's gaze. I waved my hand in front of her face since she didn't seem to have noticed me cleaning up her ramen.

"Sensei had to bring us to the warfront with Iwa about a month after you left."

I was not expecting her to say that.

"He didn't want to, but there was an emergency and we were too close to the red line for him to send us back alone."

I squatted beside her, a hand on her knee.

"He left us at the base while he went to fight, but while he was gone, Iwa found out we, his Genin team, were nearby so they came after us. They destroyed the base. Minato and I got out because one of the Chuunin had taken us out to teach us how to patrol. Aoi was all arrogant and said he already knew how; his big brother was a Tokubetsu Jōnin, his team's security expert, and had taught him everything."

I knew exactly what camp she was talking about. I had reached it a few days after it had been destroyed. Only a handful of shinobi had escaped. Our team had stayed there for over a week until reinforcements had arrived.

"Aoi was on the base and they took him hostage to try and force Sensei to surrender. He was about to give up to save Aoi, but Orochimaru-baka arrived and wouldn't let him. They argued and it was terrifying. The next day, they sent Aoi back. On-on one side of head, his hair was dyed red and on the other it was yellow. His eyes had been ripped out, his tongue cut out, his nails torn off. Most of the skin on his body had been removed one way or another. His fingers, elbows, knees, ankles, and toes were all shattered beyond repair. His face was almost entirely burned away; we wouldn't have recognized him if we hadn't known who we were looking for. The worst part was that he was still alive."

I pressed my fist over my mouth, sickened.

"Sensei wanted to bring him back to Konoha so Tsunade could save him, but he wouldn't have survived the trip. One of the messenger Chuunin said that there was someone, a boy in a green haori, on their way who had the best chance of saving him if we left him at the base, slim as that chance was. We didn't have a choice. Sensei needed to join the rest of his team. I wanted to stay at the camp and help them rebuild, but Sensei sent us back with the next group that brought supplies. They brought us here and Minato and I have been doing every mission we could without a Jōnin-sensei ever since."

I remembered the base and the boy they had asked if I could heal. I hadn't recognized Aoi, nor had the rest of the team. If his brother recognized him, he never showed any sign. Names and team affiliations were extremely compartmentalized, especially the names of anyone associated with any high-profile Jōnin. None of the bases we came across were given my name, rank, or personal information besides my appearance, even though many of the people we came across knew it anyways, they didn't show it. Sakumo was too well-known and I was the perfect hostage, both to control him and to control the entire village. It was a show of silent comradeship to preserve the identities of fellow Konoha ninja.

I remembered exactly who Kushina was talking about. His hair had turned a disgusting orange from when someone tried to wash out the dye. It was obvious he had been a prisoner. I tried to save him, but his body went into shock as soon had I had managed to patch up the internal hemorrhaging to begin a surgery focused on removing the blood filling his chest cavity that was keeping him from breathing properly as well as his heart from steadily beating. I could have easily dealt with both the shock and the subsequent heart failure, I had plenty of chakra, but the dehydration from the burns and lack of skin killed the boy before I could do anything about it. Not that I could have done anything in the first place, at least not without hospital equipment.

Kushina continued. "You were the medic who singlehandedly doubled the standing force on the Suna front just by healing those who were poisoned and stopping a lot of the poisons from hurting them again. You were the only medic who had any chance of saving Aoi. You're the person they're calling the Spirit of the Triage."

I had heard the name they had taken to calling me. Just like my haori, it made me smile every time I heard it, mostly because I had liked historical stories in my old world and even though the titles had nothing in common, I had gotten the name similar to how Florence Nightingale was dubbed the 'The Lady with the Lamp.' It was more common for me to spend several night in a row healing and get a few hours of sleep while being carried on a teammate's back to the next base.

We had stopped for the night at a civilian village somewhere near the Valley of the End when I first heard the name. I managed to choke down a laugh and immediately dashed to our rooms and collapsed into hysterics. Sakumo followed and was more than a little concerned for my sanity until I told him what I found so funny about the name. He didn't find it funny, but he rolled his eyes and let me have my laugh.

Finally, Kushina asked the question that I had been expecting. "Did you manage to save Aoi?"

"No," I responded. "I didn't know it was him until you told me what happened to him, but I tried to save him. As soon as I stepped on the base they brought me to him. I almost saved him, I think I could have, but I didn't have the hospital equipment I needed or anyone to help. But that's what most of the losses come down to now, there just isn't _enough_."

"It's okay, I know you did everything you could. Thank you for trying, Nii-san."

I let the silence stretch on.

"Did you have to fight?" She asked in a small voice.

"A few times."

"Did you have to kill?"

"Y-yes."

She looked away from me and laid her head on the table. "What did it feel like?"

I frowned. That wasn't a question Kushina would ever ask and she didn't even sound like she wanted an answer. A heartbeat later, I flinched. "It felt wrong, but not. The first time, I was too scared to fight. He was a teenager, no more than five years older than me, a new Chuunin at best, on a Jōnin team just like mine. He was from Suna and his team had somehow made it past the border. We weren't sure how. He was twirling a kunai around his finger, taunting me. I kept tripping backwards until he used some earth release to trap me against a wall, I didn't draw my weapons. He was about to tear my throat out when he stopped. He recognized me as an Uzumaki. He recognized me as the person who managed to counter some of their poisons. He swore my death would be as slow and painful as possible. I didn't want to die. I couldn't die. There were people who needed my help. He slashed at my stomach. I blocked and shattered his knee with one of my sticks. He screamed as he landed on that knee and then I broke one of his wrists. I dropped my sticks, grabbed the back of his head and bashed his face in against my knee. He was dead before my sticks hit the ground."

"A bunch of bandits were desperate when Minato and I were delivering supplies to the yellow line last week. They came out of nowhere. I-I don't really remember exactly what happened, just that by the end of the attack, there were eight of them dead and we had killed four each."

There was something else she wanted to say, I just knew it, so I waited.

"I didn't feel anything. We just left their bodies to burn and finished the mission."

I wasn't surprised. She had spent two years in the Academy being conditioned to kill without remorse.

"That's wrong, isn't it?"

It wasn't her fault she was trained that way. "You're the one who has to decide that."

"You think it's wrong, right, Nii-san?"

"I think murder is wrong. They attacked first, so it was self-defense. Maybe you took it too far, but that is most certainly not your fault. The Academy and your sensei trained you to kill and you did exactly what was expected of you. Now, let's go find somewhere to have a nice dinner because I feel like I haven't had real food in over a year."

"Sure."

Kushina wrapped her arms around my waist. When we stepped out of the door, I jumped in surprise as I noticed Arata leaning against the wall holding a corpse scroll.

"So my little brother is really dead and I just stood there. I thought it was him, but I spent the entire time thinking it might not have been. He was a Genin. He wasn't supposed to be allowed beyond the red line and he couldn't have gotten good enough to be a Chuunin yet, not on his team."

"I'm sorry I couldn't save him."

"Don't be. He was dead before you even reached him. Hatake sent me to bring you this." Arata handed me a cloth bag. "Congratulations, you're a Chuunin now, you've been a Chuunin for awhile, that's your uniform. Report to the briefing rooms tomorrow at sunrise. We have another mission." He vanished. I glanced in the bag and saw a Chuunin vest and a wad of black cloth before turning back to Kushina.

"We still have time for dinner, right? And you'll visit Minato-kun with me?"

I tossed the bag inside and gave her a tight hug. "Of course."


	10. Chapter 10

The next morning, Kushina had tried to insist that I wear my haori, but when I explained that I didn't want the village to know who I was, she didn't argue the point. I walked her to where she was meeting Minato for their daily missions before dashing across the rooftops to the briefing room.

"Uzumaki, you're late." Hatake snapped as I hurried inside. I was only a few seconds late.

"Inuzuka and Dog aren't here," I retorted.

"They've already been briefed and are collecting the explosives we'll need." Hatake pulled down the map and provided a visual of our path. "Our team is going to go through Ame and strike directly at the Iwa border posts."

A bad feeling settled in my gut. "What about Hanzō?"

"We're going to have to get past his troops. Ame has attempted to remain neutral in this conflict, but Iwa, Konoha, and Suna have been encroaching on their land. Some shinobi make it out, some don't. This is an A-ranked mission."

"I've been a Chuunin for less than twenty-four hours and I have one completed mission, how the hell am I assigned to something like this?"

"You've been a Chuunin for almost four months, Uzumaki, and you're qualified as a battle medic. Most shinobi would kill for your luck."

I settled down, unhappy. If I had a choice, I would just repeat my last mission. I felt like I was doing something useful. With this mission, I felt like I was only going to hurt people.

Hatake tossed a Bingo Book at me and one at Shimizu. "Newest issue. Uzumaki, you're in there right beside Tsunade-hime, good job. Shimizu, you're still in the clear for infiltration work and after this mission, we're all being reassigned to different teams. We are going to be going in blind to this mission, so let's all make it back, okay? Rendezvous at point three, ten minutes. Uzumaki, with me."

Shimizu left quickly.

"Uzumaki, where's your haori?"

"In my bag. I don't want to wear it in the village."

"From now on, you're to wear it everywhere, especially when you're on-duty. I'm telling this to you as your sensei, not an officer. As your superior, I'm ordering you to start holding your tongue when it comes to your anger at the Hokage. As a fellow shinobi, I'm advising you to wear your hitai-ate normally. Everyone knows you're an Uzumaki now and the best way to protect your sister is to make sure you're the one who's most easily targeted, not her. I talked with her sensei and until she can defend herself properly, she'll be wearing a hood whenever she leaves the village."

He grabbed my arm by the sleeve, which nearly covered my entire hand. They didn't make Chuunin uniforms for kids who should have been Genin, though they did make ANBU uniforms, which I found to be a little annoying. He pulled out four strips of white cloth and used it to tie my sleeve just above my elbow and around my wrist so it didn't fall over my hands and hinder my dexterity. As I pulled on the haori, I felt like a miniature rip-off of the future Yondaime. I snickered.

"Alright, what is so funny about this haori?" Sakumo demanded. "You've been dodging the question for months now."

I couldn't help it, I busted out in uncontrollable laughter.

He was not amused.

"Fine, ha, the future Yondaime wore a white haori in this style with red flames and his title down the back. I totally ripped him off."

"I still don't see what's funny."

"Ha, I stole the style of the man who defeated the Kyuubi. Not only will there be no Kyuubi for him to defeat, but he'll be stuck in those ugly Hokage robes. The best part is that no one else gets it!" I switched the bandanna-style of my hitai-ate to the standard style and let my bangs flop over it. Thankfully they weren't too long to get in my eyes, though the rest of my hair was raggedly cut just below my chin. On the previous mission, I had discovered why styles from my world were rare among shinobi. Scissors were not a very common item on missions and kunai were the preferred hair-cutting instrument. Understandably, that made longer cuts easier and more common.

"Ever thought that you might end up being the Yondaime?"

"Like hell the old codger would hand me his hat, not after the stunt I pulled going after the kidnapping and then challenging him like I did. Give it about twelve years and you'll know exactly who the Yondaime will be."

"Don't think you can get strong enough?"

"Sure, I could, but I don't want to be Hokage, just strong enough that I can do whatever the hell I want and no one can tell me otherwise. Don't we have a mission to head out on?"

Sakumo slapped the back of my head.

(-_-)

I don't know if it was luck or skill that made the mission go smoothly. We managed to destroy three of Iwa's bases with a rather impressive array of explosives, not that I did any of the detonating. I hid about a kilometer away and enjoyed the show. At least, I enjoyed it as much as I could. Explosions were always cool, but explosions with bodies flying from the wreckage were much less so. When we crossed back into Ame, the trouble started. Within a day, we had fought three different Ame teams. The first two, we defeated, but the third literally caught us napping. If Shimizu hadn't noticed the Genjutsu at the last minute, we would have been slaughtered. Hatake barely had a chance to bark out orders for me to head back to base without them, which I ignored in favor of knocking out his opponent from behind. We were forced to flee and lost most of our supplies in the process. Because of it, Hatake split the team.

If we did happen to chance across any food, there was a small chance it would be able feed us all and smaller groups could travel without detection easier than a larger group. Hatake and I split off and took the longer route back. At the Ame-Konoha border, we chanced upon the remnants of a village.

"There might be leftover food in one of these houses," I suggested. For some reason, I couldn't shake the feeling of déjà vu. "Watch my back?"

"Go ahead." Cautiously, we entered the largest of the houses and made a beeline for the kitchen. I opened the cupboards looking for something. "Someone's been here recently, I can smell them and blood."

"Shinobi?"

"You can't identify shinobi by smell, Uzumaki. Civilian blood smells exactly the same. I don't think they're here now."

"I'll check the house to be sure." I wandered through the house, peering cautiously into rooms, my sticks in my hands and chakra in my feet in case of a surprise. I expected a trap. What I didn't expect was to have a pair of violet eyes staring at me out of the darkness. I raised my sticks defensively.

"Ise, it's him, it's Ryuunosuke's child!" A woman breathed. The eyes looked away for a moment.

"Who the hell are you?" I demanded. Hatake silently appeared just out of their sight and I forced myself not to look.

"I'm Uzumaki Fusō, civilian," the woman slowly put her hands out where I could see them then stepped forward into the light. "I was friends with your mother, Midori, before she died. The last time I saw her, you were just a newborn, Kichiro."

"And my father's name?"

"Uzumaki," Hatake growled in warning.

"Ryuunosuke."

I lowered my sticks and put them away.

"Did they survive the massacre? If you're here, they must have gotten you out!"

"They both died long before the massacre."

"You poor thing—" She stepped forward, her arms out, but stopped abruptly when Hatake held a blade to her throat before she could reach me.

"Let her go," I told him. "Not even Kushina knows the names of our parents."

"How can you be sure your clan records weren't stolen by Kiri?"

"Because only an Uzumaki could get into the record scrolls. They're sealed shut," Fusō answered.

I nodded, though it wasn't the answer I was going to give.

"Who else is with you?" Hatake asked, not lowering the blade.

"Just my husband and son."

"Bring them out."

I had to hide my shock as a redheaded man rose slowly from the shadows with a boy hiding behind his leg. There was no mistaking Nagato.

"What are you doing here?"

"I'm a doctor and my wife is a nurse. We were passing though this village looking for survivors when we stopped here for a few days."

"Uzumaki," Sakumo gestured towards them.

"I'm a medic-nin. May I see your hands so I can confirm you're not shinobi I order to satisfy my paranoid teammate? It won't hurt, I promise."

They each held out a hand to me. Mine glowed green as it wrapped around each of their wrists in turn. All adult Uzumaki could use seals even if they weren't a shinobi. Their chakra systems were active, but barely anywhere near the levels of a Genin. They were clearly civilians.

"Check the boy too," Hatake ordered.

I rolled my eyes and knelt, holding my hand out to Nagato. Very slowly, he placed his hand in mine.

While travelling across the warfronts I had encountered plenty of Uchiha and Hyuuga. Their chakra had a distinctive twist to it around their eyes, as well as the structural differences. Nagato's had a similar twist around his, but it was obviously dormant and his chakra levels were nearly Genin level, though also dormant.

"They're all Uzumaki civilians," I told Hatake. "Now let her go. They are who they say they are."

Slowly, he put away his kunai and Fusō put her arm around my shoulders. "Your mother would be extremely proud of you, Kichiro. Though probably not very happy you're not eating your vegetables. You're scrawny!"

"How the hell would you know I don't eat vegetables?"

"Your father hated them and you're his spitting image, right down to the language," Ise replied, picking up Nagato.

"Uzumaki, a word," Hatake said sharply.

"Hai!" I responded. "Would you mind waiting in the kitchen?"

When we were sure they were in the kitchen, Hatake turned on me. "You know better than to behave like that in enemy territory!"

"We have to bring them back to Konoha. At least, we have to bring the boy."

"What has gotten into you?"

"The boy has a dormant Rinnegan."

"That's a myth."

"Remember when we first met and I told you who I really was? Well that boy in there grew up to flatten Konoha."

"The masked man?"

"No, he singlehandedly destroyed the entire village with one jutsu about sixteen years after the Kyuubi attack. It all started because two Konoha shinobi came into the house, exactly like us, looking for food, except his parents fought and died to give him a chance to run. We bring them back to Konoha now, the plans of the man pulling the strings fall apart."

"You're asking me to bring three foreign civilians back to Konoha."

"You don't have to be responsible, but I'm bringing them back."

"You're already on thin ice, kid."

"What do you expect me to do?" I shouted at him. "Leave part of my family in the middle of a warzone when I can save them? I can't stay to protect them! The minute the Hokage hears about it he'll drag my ass back to Konoha and I won't see the light of day until he's dead!"

"Then what are you going to tell him?" Hatake demanded loudly.

"Whatever he asks for. It's not like I am still physically capable of lying to him."

"You'll get in trouble—"

"Since when has that ever stopped—"

"You won't be dealing with me, boy."

"No, I won't, I'll be dealing with a man who will free me by betrayal."

"You're in over your head."

"So much for hiding away in some obscure village, right?"

"Hide _them_ away in an obscure village, bring them back after the war."

"No, we bring them to Konoha or I stay with them and see what comes."

"I could drag you back."

"You'd never fight me like that."

"Fine, on your head be it. This is going to blow up in your face."

"I know." I turned on my heel and marched out.

"Everything alright?" Fusō asked when I walked in.

I leaned on the table that the small family sat around and Hatake stood just inside the door, arms crossed. "When I left Uzu during the massacre, I escaped with eight others. That I'm aware of, no one else made it off the island alive. I can bring any or all of you back to Konoha, if you want. I won't make you, but I want you to come back, even though I can't promise you anything other than a place to live and food to eat."

The two adults exchanged a glance. "Hanzō is already after us," Ise said in a low voice.

Fusō looked down at Nagato, who slept on her shoulder.

"We might not get another chance."

"We're helping people, Ise."

"We can help people in Konoha as well. There's always a need for doctors and nurses."

"We came here—"

"We have a son to think about now. If Hanzō catches us, he'll kill Nagato as well."

"What if we send him—"

"Kichiro can't take care of a kid, shinobi or not, he's still a child himself."

"I take care of my sister just fine. She's still alive, isn't she?" They ignored me.

Fusō's arms tightened around Nagato. "What happened to the other children you escaped with?"

"They're living in a civilian orphanage and my sister lives with me."

"Those children need a family, Fusō. We don't have anything left here."

They debated silently until Fusō turned to me. "We'll come with you, but only if It won't cause you problems with the Hokage. We could hear your argument."

"You can't do anything to change my problem with the Hokage, for better or worse."

"You said you have a sister?"

I nodded. "She's the one you should be harping on about not eating vegetables."

"Now that's settled, we need to get moving. There's about a month left before Uzumaki and I need to report back to Konoha and we won't be able to afford to stop very often if we're going to make it at a civilian pace," Hatake said sharply.

"Roads are for people with no imagination," Fusō smiled at him. "We'll make it in plenty of time."

And we did. As soon as we reached the signature Konoha trees, Ise leapt into the treetops and stood upside down.

"We may not be able to move as fast as shinobi, but we can travel much faster than civilians," he explained.

Hatake glared at me.

"Uzumaki have a very different definition of 'civilian'," I answered, scowling. Travelling alone, it would have taken me a week to reach Konoha. Fusō and Ise managed to make it back in two weeks and I carried Nagato the entire way.

As we ran, Fusō and Ise bombarded me with questions about myself, everything I knew about sealing, my sister and the other orphans, my rank, what I liked and disliked about being a shinobi, how long I'd been a shinobi, why I chose to be one, and any other topic that crossed their minds. The two of them were smart and I had a feeling they picked up more from my answers than I wanted them to. Sakumo kept his distance.

"How is Mito? I barely remember her from when I was a child but she always used to visit during the summer."

"She's dead," I answered bluntly. Ise dropped the firewood he was gathering. Fusō's grip tightened around my wrist.

"That means you—" Ise broke off.

"You poor thing!" Fusō cried. She hugged me tightly and the questions turned in an entirely different direction. Eventually, Ise struck up a debate with me over medicine and different treatments. She sits beside me as I fall asleep that night, gently rubbing my back.

They didn't press whenever I refused to answer a question, which I was thankful for.

As we passed through the main gates, I steeled myself, ignoring the alarmed looks as two ANBU landed on either side of me and one behind them. I tightened my grip on Nagato and we ran across the rooftops to the Hokage tower.


	11. Chapter 11

Normally, teammates were required to report in a group, but given the fact that Hatake and I arrived separate from our teammates and with an entourage of which it was obvious I was responsible, everyone reported separately. While Nagato's family waited in the hall, my hands deep in my pockets. I wasn't surprised when it took Hatake an entire hour to report, considering he had a lot of explaining to do, but I was annoyed at the wait. When he finally exited with his mouth set in a grim line, I started to wonder if I bit off more than I wanted to.

I pushed myself off the wall and entered the office without a word. Deciding that it couldn't get much worse than it already was, I sat down in one of the chairs without invitation or acknowledging the Hokage glaring at me across his desk.

"ANBU, you're dismissed."

After a moment, the Hokage stood up and locked the door, then activated several privacy seals. After a minute, he returned to his desk.

"Are you aware of Konoha's policy on foreigners?"

"Not exactly, but I know Konoha's policy on the Uzumaki clan very well. They'll be able to prove their identity with a simple blood test, you can scan their chakra, or ask them questions. They are who they say they are."

"Konoha does not accept shinobi during wartime!" He snapped.

"They're civilians!"

"The two adults have active chakra networks."

"They're Uzumaki! All of them were able to use seals, which require an active chakra network."

"They know Fūinjutsu?"

"Obviously," I snapped.

"Then they may stay as soon as their identity is confirmed."

I scowled. "I confirmed their identity. May I leave?"

"No. I asked Hatake-san several questions, to which he told me only you can answer."

"Can and will are two entirely separate things."

"You _will_ answer my questions."

I could feel his will pressing against mine. I pulled my hands out of my pockets and broke eye contact, staring at a plant tucked away in the corner instead, and pushed back. The Hokage was at least a decade older than me before I found myself here as well as ten times stronger, so I knew it was a losing battle to begin with, but my pride would never let me just give in.

"Report," he ordered.

I had no problem with that. I started where we left the village, and quickly summarized the actual mission.

"We stopped at a house to look for some food, found Nagato's family, I confirmed their identity, offered to bring them here, they accepted, we came back and here I am," I finished.

He was not happy with that report but I was going to make getting the details harder than pulling weasel teeth.

"How did you find the family?"

"Hiding in the shadows."

"Who did you see first?"

"Fusō-san."

"Did you recognize them first or did they recognize you."

"They recognized me."

"How?"

"According to them, I look and talk exactly like my father."

"How did you confirm their identity?"

"They told me the names of both of my parents."

"That's hardly a confirmation of identity."

"Is it? Do you know their names?"

His eye twitches.

"Exactly."

"Hatake-san mentioned you knew the exact whereabouts of your official clan records. Where are they?"

"What's left of them are scattered around training ground four. I burned them." I also made a copy and that copy was sealed into the floorboards beneath my mattress, but he only asked for the official records.

"How did you obtain these records?"

"A prank on the clan library a few hours before the massacre."

He pinched the bridge of his nose. "Why didn't you turn them into the village?"

"I didn't want to. I had no reason to. No one asked if I had them. No one told me to turn them in." Who knew pissing off a Kage could be so much fun? I was definitely going to help the next person who wanted to deface the Hokage monument.

"Did you obtain access to anything else as a result this prank?"

I could feel him trying to force me to answer, but there was no actual compulsion to do so, so I remained silent, smirking.

To my surprise, he moved on, asking questions about every detail I could remember. I gave him answers in as few words as possible, rarely using a complete sentence.

"Did you notice anything strange when you examined their chakra?"

"No," I answered. Before I finished the word, the seal in the center of my chest exploded, flooding my body with pure, indescribable pain. The next thing I knew I was on the floor curled into the fetal position. I quickly wiped the tears from my face and sat up as the Hokage crouched beside me.

"Let's try that again, shall we? Did you notice anything strange when you examined their chakra?"

"Yes!" I gasped out.

"What did you notice?"

I jerked away as he touched my shoulder. "Someone transplanted a dormant Dōjutsu into the boy."

"Now we're getting somewhere. What Dōjutsu?"

"The Rinnegan."

"Do you have any idea of the original owner of this Dōjutsu?"

I clamped my mouth shut. After a few seconds where I had no intention of answering, the pain returned and it felt worse than before. When it was over, I didn't even bother sitting up. My hitai-ate was clutched in my fist, reflecting the sun into my eyes. I threw it at him. He caught it easily.

"Why don't you want to tell me?" He asked, offering a glass of water. "You have no problem telling Hatake-san."

"I trust him. I don't trust you." I snarled, but the effect was lost considering I was refusing to look at him and lying curled on the ground. "And he waits for the whole story before he does anything."

The Hokage placed the glass of water on the desk. "Whether you accept it or not, I am deeply sorry for the Shitagau." He pressed two fingers against the seal on my forehead. It was good to know the god-awful seal had a name. "I sincerely regret that I cannot find it in myself to trust you enough to release the seal."

I snarled at him.

"From where I'm standing, my order was morally wrong, but it was not a mistake. I may not have given you any reason to trust me and given evidence to mistrust, but you gave me every reason to mistrust you and no reason to trust as well. You're intelligent enough to understand that."

"It does not justify taking away my free will!" I hissed. "How the hell can you trust if you've never tried? How arrogant can you be to expect every single person to be utterly enthralled by your 'God of Shinobi' persona? How insecure are you in yourself and your abilities that a few words spoken out of desperation from a nine-year-old, a day-old _Genin_ , could justify _enslavement to your personal whim_?"

The Hokage stared at the floor for a long time before grabbing my arm with both hands and pulling me to my feet. I stood shakily and clutched the desk for support with my free hand. "Obviously, you know many things you should not and are much more intelligent and mature than your age suggests. Hatake-san trusts you enough to leave your secrets lie. For now, I will respect his decision, but I will not release the seal."

I moved to leave the same way I entered: without acknowledging him. As I walked past he laid a hand on my shoulder holding me in place. Without looking at me, he spoke.

"I am aware you have made no effort to hide your dislike of me, going so far as to speak openly on the subject. I let it slide when you only spoke with your sister, considering she's your only family and I won't discipline you for being honest with your sensei, but this will spread no further without severe repercussions. Whatever your problem with me is, it will remain solely between us. Am I clear?"

I sorely wanted to jerk away from him and stalk out, but for once he was right. "Crystal," I responded neutrally. He released my shoulder

"Dismissed, and make sure you're always wearing your haori, on-duty or not. The people need a boost in morale."

I was out of the room faster than Minato's future Hiraishin could hope to accomplish. I wanted nothing more than to fall on a soft bed with warm blankets heaped on top of me and sleep, but with the discipline Sakumo had beaten into me, I marched into the room where Nagato's family waited.

"C'mon," I murmured to them. It was nearly sunset.

Nagato's parents exchanged one of the 'adult' looks I now found more frustrating than during my previous life before silently standing and following me. I could feel their questioning gazes on my back, but ignored them as I led them back to my apartment, my shoulders hunched and gaze on the ground to block out the whispering around me.

No one was home. There wasn't a note, so I figured she would be back by morning at the latest, but I was going to find her anyways, she'd been kidnapped one too many times already.

"The Hokage said I was responsible for making sure you have everything you need. The village can't afford to give you any help setting up. You might as well live here, considering neither of us stay here regularly anymore." I yanked a kunai out of the wall and picked up several more from across the floor, as well as an odd broken blade. I tossed all of it into the apartment's only bedroom, where we kept all our ninja things then closed the door without glancing inside. "Don't go in there, it's where we keep our ninja stuff and I don't want anyone getting hurt on accident because I'm not entirely sure of how many pranks and traps Kushina and I rigged up in there."

"Where are all your security seals?" Ise asked.

"Can't use them because this is a civilian complex and Kushina and I aren't good enough to make seals that we can prove won't kill, besides, the village is mostly safe. You have full access to everywhere else, so you can do whatever you like to the place. There's money sealed in the back of the fridge if you need anything. In the morning, I'll bring you to the hospital to find out where you can help. I'm going to go locate my sister right now, there should be some ramen in the cupboards, maybe something in the fridge. I'll help you get settled as soon as I can. You're probably tired, so don't wait up for me, you won't notice me come back anyways." They didn't need to know anything more.

I shunshined out of the still-open door and clumsily arrived a street away from the mission room, annoyed at how far I missed my intended destination. As I approached the window to find statuses of shinobi, the Chuunin didn't even look at me.

"We don't share information with civilians," he grunted. "Especially not civilian wannabes."

"Good thing I'm not a civilian," I responded coldly. "Is my sister on a mission?"

He looked down at me with a raised eyebrow. "I expected you to be taller."

"Yeah, and I expected you to be more helpful."

"Fine. Uzumaki Kushina is your sister, right?"

"Yes."

His hand flicked through a sign asking for confirmation and I rolled my eyes and gave it. "She was just placed on medical leave."

I frowned and left, heading straight for Minato's apartment. I stopped at the door.

I wasn't a great sensor but if I concentrated, I could pick up familiar chakra signals and get a somewhat accurate idea of their mood. Both Kushina and Minato were asleep in the middle of the floor, wrapped in several blankets. As quietly as I could, without using any ninja techniques, I opened the door and slipped inside, locking it behind me. With a bit of dancing to get past the traps and avoiding twisting my ankle on the equally dangerous not-trapped mess inside the door, I made it into the main room and crouched beside Kushina. Normally, she was a heavy sleeper, but I wasn't surprised when she instantly woke and grabbed my wrist. Luckily, she didn't attack me like my teammates were prone to do while on missions.

"Nii-san!" Two voices cried and both Minato and Kushina knocked me back with a hug.

I could have avoided being pinned underneath the two over-eager Genin, but something wasn't right. "So why are you lying in the middle of the floor."

"Um, we had to write some reports," he mumbled into my stomach somewhere, but there was no paper to be seen.

"Liar, is everything alright? You're not normally this clingy." An undignified squeak escaped me as two children clinging to me turned into two shinobi children. "I'll take that as a no," I gasped. Sure they were kids, they probably missed me, considering I ended up mostly taking care of both of them for two years, but when Kushina shuddered and tightened her grip enough to crack a rib if I wasn't reinforcing it with chakra and Minato started crying, I figured something bad had gone down.

I laid my hands on their heads, pulsing with medical chakra. Kushina knocked my hand away before I could figure out anything. That set off practically every alarm bell I had. I scanned Minato instead. Whoever had healed him up had done a good job on the outside, but it was wartime and full healings just didn't exist. There was minor internal hemorrhaging around his abdomen, which had been healed just enough that I couldn't figure out how it happened and the pain would prevent Minato from moving very much for the next few weeks. Definitely done by one of Tsunade's disciples. There was plenty of bruising across his skin, everywhere except his face. The skin on his lower legs seemed new, which meant someone had regrown it.

"What the hell happened?" When neither made any motion to explain, I sat up. Kushina clutched a fistful of my clothes. Both of them were far too warm to be healthy and it was uncomfortably hot with both of them pressed against me and the blankets on top of them. "This isn't funny you two, I can't do a damn thing if you don't tell me anything."

"We're fine, just a bad mission," Kushina choked out.

"You're Genin, you aren't allowed on missions that'll leave you in this state," I retorted.

Kushina shuddered again and I tried to run a second diagnostics jutsu on her, but she grabbed my wrist and forced my arm away.

I pulled Minato up to sit beside me then dragged Kushina into my lap. I held my hand, glowing with medical Ninjutsu in front of her. "Let me help, Kushina, or I will knock you out and help you anyways." The hospital couldn't force treatment on anyone and formerly captured ninja tended to get their way, but I had no regard for hospital policies in the middle of an apartment with two kids who seemed to be in some sort of traumatic shock. Besides, I not only outranked he, but I was her legal guardian as well.

She turned her face into my neck and wrapped her arms around my chest, crying. I gently hugged her back and laid my hand against the back of her head. Minato had let someone heal him, or at least didn't have a choice in the matter; Kushina had not and I got the entire disgusting picture of what happened. She'd been captured, that much was immediately obvious. I was furious, but not surprised that she'd been beaten and raped. I murmured quiet reassurances mixed with death threats to whomever was responsible. It only took me about a half hour to heal all the internal damage, she hadn't been captured for long. When I looked at the external damage, I froze. Kushina had been forced to stand in some kind of fire, which left third-degree burns, and there was some kind of message burned on her back. She didn't struggle as I gently slipped the blanket off her shoulders and looked down the back of her borrowed shirt to see the kanji for 'medic' etched into her skin. Feeling sick, I quickly healed it, taking extra care in making sure I didn't leave any scarring, and hugged her tightly. I felt like something inside of me had snapped.

"Suna or Iwa?" I asked Minato, putting my arm around him as well and finishing his healing. They were the only countries who had a legitimate reason to retaliate against me specifically.

"Suna," he answered, leaning against me.

"And the team that caught you?"

"Dead. The ANBU killed them."

"How long ago?"

"I-I don't know, not long."

I struck the Sandaime off my list of people to murder for this, there was probably no way for him to have known about it before I left, in fact, he probably found out about it right after I stormed out, or might still be unaware. "Where did they find you?"

"On one of the training grounds. They killed the ANBU guarding us."

ANBU worked in two-man teams at minimum, especially for guarding two individuals. "Did they take you out of the village?"

"No, training ground forty-four."

A loud knock sounded from the door.

"It's the ANBU who killed the Suna team," Minato informed me.

"You sure?"

He nodded.

"Come in!" I called out. They could unlock the door themselves.

After a moment, the ANBU appeared out of the hall. I frowned. The mask looked exactly like Kakashi's. I closed my eyes and looked at the chakra signature. It was definitely Sakumo. Someone had a sense of irony. When I opened my eyes, he told me he and a full team was there to guard Minato and Kushina.

I signed back confirmation.

"What did he say?" Minato asked.

"It doesn't matter. You're completely safe now, both of you, at least until this war is over."

"B-but how do you know?" Kushina asked.

"'Cause he's gonna stay with us!" Minato responded, looking up at me hopefully.

"No, the ANBU are going to protect you all of the time. I'm gonna go out and beat up the people responsible, okay?"

"No!" Minato cried, twisting in my arm and combining forces with Kushina to pin me down.

"They said if you left the village again, they'd torture and kill you and then come for us and—and do all sorts of horrible things!"

Luckily, I was better at getting out of being pinned than either of them could ever hope to be at holding me down. With a complicated twist that required all my flexibility and a bit of deliberately targeting pain receptors, I crouched with my arms loosely around both of their shoulders.

"I promise you both they won't get me, at least not until I've gotten them first. The only problem is that once I get to them, they won't be able to get to me. Do you want to help?"

They both looked up at me in awe then nodded. The joys of impressionable children. They'll believe anything with enough conviction behind it, and I had plenty.

"You've been learning about sealing from Kushina, right?" I asked Minato.

He nodded.

"Good, I need you both to come up with a seal that can make me completely invisible and undetectable. Can you do it?"

"Hell yeah, -ttebane!"

"Good. I have a someone who might be able to help you get it done faster, you ready?"

They nodded. I signed 'home' into the air and pulled them along with me in a shunshin back to the apartment to meet Nagato's family. I landed the Shunshin far closer to my intended landing point than I normally did (across the street instead of a block away).

I guided the two Genin into the apartment. Instead of a traditional hello to the family finishing up their ramen dinner, I announced, "Introductions all around!" I put a hand on Kushina's head. "Everyone, this is Uzumaki Kushina, my little sister from Uzu." I put my hand on Minato's head. "This is Namikaze Minato, my adopted little brother from Konoha." I pointed at each of the other Uzumakis in turn. "That's Uzumaki Ise, Uzumaki Fusō, and little Uzumaki Nagato. Kushina, Fusō was friends with our mother. They moved out of Uzu a few years before the massacre and I found then while I was in Ame on my last mission."

Kushina looked like a kid with a hundred presents under the Christmas tree. She turned to me and gave me a hug that felt more like strangulation. "You're the best nii-san ever, -ttebane!" She shouted.

"Not for very long!" I choked before someone, I was sure it was Minato, knocked my breath away with a second hug, then a third, rather small, body, probably Nagato, leapt on my back, followed by two more sets of arms. The biggest set wrapped around everyone and when my feet started to leave the ground, I replaced myself with a pillow from one of the beds. I made a mental note to never again incite an Uzumaki-Plus-Minato group hug as everyone decided my need to use medical Ninjutsu to fix myself was the funniest thing since fart jokes.

"So, you'll be able to make that seal?" I asked Kushina, who was the first around the corner, grinning widely.

She gave me an evil grin. "You bet!"

"Then I'm going to go get permission to implement the rest of my plan." I left through the window with another shunshin, and landed in front of the Hokage tower.

An ANBU landed beside me with what appeared to be a fox mask. "The Hokage wishes to see you."

"Good, I need to see him too." I yelped as the ANBU's hand closed around my arm and pulled me into the Hokage office through the window.

I was about to speak when I noticed the Hokage glaring angrily at three shinobi dressed in the ANBU uniforms sans mask. Three ANBU masks were piled on his desk.

"It was two minutes!" One of them protested.

"It doesn't matter!" The Hokage roared back, furious. "You left your respective posts for two minutes and ten Suna _Jōnin_ made it into this village undetected! In two minutes a team of that caliber could have taken out half the village leadership!"

"They were just Genin! How the hell was I supposed to know they have two villages gunning for them?"

"Oh, so I suppose if you were guarding the Daimyō you would have been fine leaving your post because he's just a _civilian_?" I snapped.

"Shut up, little Chuunin, you don't belong here."

"Like hell I don't belong here. It was my _sister_ who was just captured and tortured! Not to mention her and Minato are _Jiraiya's_ students and their capture would have not only controlled me, the Kyuubi Jinchuuriki, but him as well, and through him, the Hokage himself, but you'd be just fine with that, right, because they're _just Genin_? Would you like to go explain to two eight-year-olds that you're the reason they were just tortured?"

The Hokage flicked his fingers and three ANBU descended from the ceiling and forcibly escorted them out just as the full implications of their slip-up hit them.

"I was going to call you back to make sure Suna's message didn't reach you, but I guess I'm too late."

"Far too late," I responded, ignoring the three council members observing from the corner of the room. "I'm going to talk to the fox."

"You can't!" One of them exploded.

"Stop me!" I snarled back and took a threatening step forward. The ANBU that brought me in stepped in to hold me back.

"I'll handle this," the Hokage said and waved his hand. "Please wait outside."

Furious, they left. And the ANBU released me. I angrily straightened my clothes.

"Why do you want to talk to the fox?" The Hokage demanded.

"To release the Ichibi on Suna."

Obviously, that made absolutely no sense to the Hokage. "And how, pray tell, do those two things connect?"

I shrugged. "It's a very long story, but in short, the tailed beasts are the most powerful beings in the world. I want these beings to like me. Suna pissed me off, so I'm going to kill two birds with one stone: start my crusade to free the tailed beasts and at make a very good opening through which I can kill the Kazekage, who gave the order to torture my sister. I need the Kyuubi's help to do that. Is there a specific place you would prefer me to make my agreement with the Kyuubi? Or can I sit right here?"

"I can't stop you. Go sit down somewhere out of the way. I have work to do. Afterwards, please tell me your plan for killing the Kazekage before you rush off."

I rolled my eyes and sat down in the middle of the room. It had been over a year since I last managed to properly enter my own mindscape. After a few false starts, I managed it, only to find myself face-to-face with a frightening Kurama crucified against a sphere of something.

(-_-)

My favorite way to get over a fear of public speaking was to imagine the entire audience as angry babies. It always worked for me, and it worked very well in helping me get over any terror I had in facing a being that could crush me under the tip of his claw.

For once, I decided to make Sakumo proud and be moderately respectful without being told. "Hello, my name is Kichiro, what's yours?"

Kurama just studied me carefully. **You want to free the Bijū.** I was quite thrilled by the fact that the hatred defining his character in my memories had not fully manifested. Either that or he was just interested enough in my completely unique way of looking at him to not issue threats of murder.

"Obviously, you were paying attention."

 **Prove it.**

"No problem. I'll start my crusade right away, but you have to agree to two conditions."

He snorted. **And what will I get out of this?** I counted the fact that he was listening and considering what I had to say as a win.

"Freedom upon my natural death and if you work with me you and I might be able to make sure you are never sealed again."

 **Tempting, but I will escape eventually. I nearly did the day I was sealed into you.**

"Yeah, and it would have done me a very big favor if you had killed me then. Just saying. You've been sealed in me for nearly six months and haven't gotten anywhere, not for lack of trying. As time goes on, people will only get stronger and your chances will diminish."

 **You have a point, little rat.**

"Charmed. Do you want to hear the conditions?"

 **Go ahead.**

"First, upon your release you will not attack Konoha and you will only hurt and destroy that which attacks you first, well, that which attempts to attack you first."

When he made no response, I continued.

"Second, you will make sure that I am not killed in any way except when I decide to voluntarily release this seal."

 **I can't fix injuries, not while in this particular seal.**

"True, but if you agree to work with me, I'll see what I can do to get rid of the seal or at least reduce it. Or at least alter it so you're mostly free."

 **I could turn on you the second you do so.**

"True, but I don't think you will."

 **Then you're an idiot.**

"I don't think I am. You can detect negative emotions and there's something about it that you don't like. I sincerely doubt you're oblivious to the anger, the pain, and the fear of the other Bijū, your siblings, who aren't as strong as you and need someone to at least bail them out." I was crossing into dangerous territory with the fox. If I pushed to hard or implied the wrong thing, it could all blow up and bite me in the ass. Even so, a little ego-stoking could come in handy. "I don't think Konoha was really ever one of those places you genuinely hate. The people here try to do what's right, as misguided and wrong as their actions turn out to be." I tapped the seal on my forehead as an example. "You punish evil, even though innocents often get caught in the crossfire."

 **You've given me something to think about. Leave.**

He couldn't throw me out of my own mind, but he did have much more experience inside my mind and managed to effectively threw me out anyways. My eyes flew open and I felt horribly sick. I barely made it to the trash can before I puked my guts out in front of the council and several clan heads

"So, have you realized the Kyuubi can't be reasoned with?" The Sandaime asked smugly.

"Actually, the opposite. He's cynical, justifiably indignant at being treated worse than a street-dog, has a bit of an ego, but unreasonable is not a word that can be applied to him. He seems to think of himself as a traitor but I don't think he'll go back on his word."

Just like that, I could see the Hokage's blood pressure skyrocket, even though I was still hunched over the trashcan, puking at odd intervals.

"What seal did Mito use on the Kyuubi?" I asked.

"Why do you want to know?"

"I need to loosen it."

There it went, the blood pressure of the entire room started to push dangerous levels. I barely held back a smile.

"Surely you're not considering—" one of the clan heads exploded.

The Sandaime quickly held up a hand. "It's almost two in the morning. I think we all could do with some rest."

The hell? It was barely dark when I got to his office.

The clan heads left, disgruntled, but the council didn't. Danzō spoke up. "This has gone far enough, Hiruzen. Every time that boy speaks you dismiss the room! How are we expected to give advice if we know nothing about this village's weapons?"

"Just shut up, old warmonger! You got your personal army, why the hell do you need his as well?" Judging by his rapidly paling face, it hit far, far closer to the mark than I expected. "The hell? You actually have a personal army?" Already?

Faster than I could blink, the man backhanded me across the face. "What could a Genin know?" He snarled, towering above me.

"Chuunin!" I spat back. Word to the wise: don't backtalk pissed-off old men with power to sling around. The drama that ensued was not the slightest bit pleasant. The man's hands came together and my eyes widened as fire flooded from his mouth. I jerked my hands up to cover my face but instead of fire from outside poring over me, fiery chakra swelled up from inside of me and a hand burst out of my chest to catch the blade which appeared out of nowhere and wrenched the blade headed straight for my heart out of Danzō's hand.

 **I accept your terms.** The Kyuubi said. **_Kill him_** **.**

The blade flew into my hand, but before I could move, the Hokage's hand slammed a piece of paper into my gut.

"Five Elements Seal!" He ground out.

The Kyuubi snarled with frustration and returned back into the seal. **You need to get stronger.** He gave his parting shot at me. Why the hell was he antagonizing _me_?

Well, I was nine years old and Danzō was at least three times that. The fox could deal with it.

For some time, I was much more interested in whatever havoc was being wreaking in my chakra system than what was going on around me.

When I opened my eyes, the seal was gone and I lay on a small mattress with Kushina sprawled on top of me, sound asleep and Minato against my side, fidgeting with a hole in my shirt. Someone had removed my weapons, Chuunin vest, haori, and shoes, which had been replaced with socks. I could hear three other people breathing softly in the room. I could hate fighting and murder all I wanted, but the people who would have threaten and torture little kids didn't deserve to live and I was sure as hell going to make sure no one attacked Minato and Kushina again. At least until each of them was a big enough badass to deal with their own enemies.


	12. Chapter 12 - Part 3

It had been three days since I last emerged from the basement of the Hokage tower where the Kyuubi had been sealed inside of me. I spent nearly all that time working on channeling the Kyuubi's strength without killing myself. An ANBU visited three times a day and brought me food and occasionally a scroll on the tailed beasts that had been found in the village archives.

When I finally left for a day, I traded the embarrassment of almost forgetting Minato's birthday for the embarrassment of being the only person who remembered, including the boy himself. When I walked into the apartment with a present in my hands I found the two Genin and the two adults leaning over a complicated seal far beyond my comprehension that covered the entire table with paper. Poor Nagato was flopped over one of the mattresses unknotting a length of ninja wire.

"Happy birthday, Minato!" I said with as much enthusiasm as I could muster.

They shushed me and continued in their debate.

"They been being mean for days!" Nagato told me wisely. It sounded pathetic coming from the boy. "They won't play with me! To-chan always plays with me!"

I felt bad because I had been the one to ask them to make the seal. It made me feel even worse when I realized that Nagato wasn't even old enough to go to school, so he had absolutely nothing to do. The walls were drawn on, some of the doodles were pictures, and others resembled crooked kanji while his fingers were stained with ink. He had pushed the mattresses and appeared to have made some sort of game with the blankets and pillows. I was surprised he hadn't wandered out yet, though that might have been because of the combination of the child-proofing seals and the fact he couldn't quite reach the lock above the doorknob.

"Hey, kiddo, why don't you and I go out for a big breakfast somewhere and then go to the playground?"

"Really?" He jumped up and ran at me, colliding with my knees and not letting go.

"Sure, just let me tell them where we'll be so they don't worry."

"You're the best nii-san ever! You are my nii-san, right? That's what Ka-chan said when we were in that boring building!"

"Um, sure, I'll be your nii-san too," I answered as I scribbled down the note and left it on top of Minato's present, the scooped up the impressive pile of mail on the doormat for something to read later. "I know the perfect place to eat, ready to go?"

Nagato ran to the door and pulled on his shoes. I grabbed one of my old jackets hanging in the closet and slipped it on him. It was January and a little cold for a kid. I could use a little bit of medical chakra to warm myself up.

I was about to open the door when Nagato reached up to me. "Up?" He asked. I crouched down and he hopped onto my back. "Fly! Fly!" He insisted. I glanced back at the table where the three Uzumakis and Minato were bent over the seal. I wanted to pull them out, but Nagato had obviously been bored for days. I have no idea how they forgot about the boy, but he deserved some fun, especially since it was mostly my fault he was being ignored. Once the boy had a secure grip, I leapt to the roof to show him _my_ favorite way to get breakfast in Konoha. Nagato was perfectly happy carrying part of our breakfast and curious as to what I was planning. When we reached the closest market square, I set Nagato on his feet. He immediately grasped my hand and let me pull him through the square to several stands where I bought us assorted fruits and sweets.

One thing I did not miss at all from my world was the grocery stores. In the Konoha market, I knew the people who grew my food and I didn't have to worry about choosing the right things, the stands I was most familiar with knew exactly what I wanted and all I had to do was walk up and they would get it ready with a smile and a little small talk. At the stand that always gave me an extra stick of dango for free, I shared my most recent healing escapades or she regaled me with tales of the time she spent as a medic-nin before a grouchy Iwa nin liberated one of her hands and stole it as a trophy, forcibly retiring the woman. Her daughter made the dango and she sold it. At the cart with the oranges, one of the man's daughters was an aspiring novelist and would run ideas past me and make me promise to buy her book whenever it was published. I liked talking with the civilians because it let me forget about everything ninja and remember what it was like to be a civilian.

Nagato wasn't keen on most of the attention, especially from strangers so I hurried through the market, even though the people I met wanted nothing more than to catch me and beg for news from the shinobi side of the war. I discovered that I had a reasonable fan following as the 'Spirit of the Triage' especially among the civilian children. I couldn't say I was surprised. There was no such thing as a decent role model from the shinobi world. As a rule, shinobi exploits were generally looked down upon by civilians. Theft, torture, and murder just never made appropriate bedtime stories. It made sense as to why everyone seemed to want me to wear my haori everywhere.

Bringing Nagato to breakfast was a good idea to begin with. There was a small playground near the Uchiha compound everyone except the Uchiha tended to avoid. Because of that, it stayed deserted until well after lunch. Nagato and I enjoyed our morning meal in the grass near the bottom of the metal slide. It wasn't particularly healthy, consisting of mostly sweets and some bread, but it was fun, even though the air was a bit too cold to be comfortable.

I pulled out two slices of off-season watermelon I managed to buy without Nagato noticing. We had fun as I showed the boy how to spit seeds. I had never been good at it in either life, but Nagato happily picked it up easily enough. When the sun finally reached above the treetops, it started to warm up.

At first, there was only two clan kids, an Inuzuka and a Nara a bit more than a year older than Nagato, whose mothers dared to come so close to the Uchiha compound. They were joined shortly after by two Uchiha mothers and three other children around the same age, plus an infant. I remained sitting on the grass while Nagato played with the other kids. Five civilian kids of varied ages and clearly all related, dragged a harried, two-man Genin team to investigate the ruckus. By the time lunch rolled around, there were twelve children running around the playground, all under the age of seven.

Until then, only Nagato ever came within arm's reach of me. Kids were generally taught not to get too close to a shinobi without permission. I amused myself by covertly watching the two Genin who hung uncertainly in the tree-line and flipped through the mail. They recognized me, I was sure of it. One had even hidden a Bingo Book behind his partner's back to check. I noticed one of the letters to be extremely official-looking, and tucked it into my pocket to look at later when I could concentrate. Kushina's clever sealing that had been applied to my kunai pouch had also been applied to my pockets, though it only fit approximately six square inches of things.

One of the mothers brought a lunch basket filled with food for all the kids, which was unexpectedly kind. The group of mothers somehow wrangled the Genin into distributing the food. I felt bad for them as the children attacked the two boys, but not enough to stand up and help them, it was good training in situational awareness as well as self-control.

I didn't move when Nagato plopped himself down in my lap, a sandwich clutched in his hand. Ten minutes later, the entire group was back at play and the Genin finally found the nerve to approach me, presumably to ask if I was the Spirit of the Triage. If I was reading the conversation between the mothers properly, they had figured it out a long time ago and now the two Genin were the main topic of conversation, and if I wasn't mistaken, a few bets.

With the pretext of bringing me some of the leftovers from the lunch, the older Genin came over.

"Are you on a mission?" He asked as he held out the small sandwiches.

"No." I responded curtly.

"Then why are you wearing a uniform?"

"The Hokage told me to." That was not the answer he was expecting.

"Who's the boy you're here with?"

"My new little brother."

"Why are you here?" He sat down in front of me.

"His parents are working with my other two siblings on a project and he was bored." I made a mental note to complement the boy's interrogation skills. They were nearly Chuunin-level, and if I didn't know exactly what information he was after and felt like making him work for it, it would have accomplished its objective very quickly.

"Aren't Chuunin supposed to dress like civilians when they're off-duty?" He asked, the slightest amount of accusation in his voice as he dug dirt out from under his nails with a kunai. He might've looked intimidating if he was about ten years older with twice the muscle.

Clever, he was trying to put me on the defensive and make me want to explain myself. Well, tricks only worked if you fell for them. "I already told you, the Hokage, and my sensei, told me to stay in uniform even when I was off-duty."

"Right." He was definitely frustrated. "Why did they tell you to stay in uniform?"

I threw him a bone. "It seems to me you've already figured it out when you were going through that Bingo Book."

"So, you are the Spirit?"

Never mind, I was going to screw with his head. "What are you talking about?"

"Are you the Spirit of the Triage?"

"What are you talking about?" Of course, my scam had to be upended by a stupid kid.

One of the kids screamed in pain, followed quickly by one of the women racing towards him. When I finally found the kid, who had fallen while trying to walk on the monkey-bars, the woman had already fallen to her knees beside the boy.

"Don't touch him!" I shouted before the mother could pick the boy up. In a second I was on my feet and running to the kid. The mother glared at me while the boy screamed. "I'm a medic-nin," I explained, "May I give treatment?"

If she had been a civilian mother, I wouldn't have bothered asking, but considering she was the Inuzuka boy's mother and had a kunai in her hand, I figured it was in my best interests to ask first.

"Go ahead," she told me and sat back on her heels. Nagato grabbed a fistful of my haori and buried his face in my back. I ignored him and ran two fingers down the boy's spine, which was thankfully unharmed, even if he had a depression fracture in his skull from hitting something on the way down. I fixed the boy's head first, trying not to look at the nasty compound fracture in his upper arm.

Unlike most medics, I had enough chakra to do full healings, and I didn't care about whether I should or not.

I wanted to show off a tiny bit, so I put the bone back into the boy's body using just chakra. Luckily, I remembered to sever the boy's pain receptors in the process, otherwise it might have been much more painful to the ears.

When I finished, my head ached just like it always did whenever I had to repair nerves. Nagato clung to one of my legs as the mother held her kid while he cried, even though I knew he wasn't hurt at all.

"Thank you," she said earnestly.

"You're welcome," I answered politely and picked up Nagato. A second later, I was mobbed by little children who suddenly thought I was the coolest thing since candy.

"You are the Spirit of the Triage!" One of the Genin accused.

"Um, yeah, but, you know—"

The younger Genin interrupted, "You're the Habanero's brother!"

"What?" Well, Kushina never told me about that nickname.

"You're Uzumaki Kichiro!"

"I wanna go to a different park," Nagato murmured in my ear. Well, I had no idea how to respond to the instant-celebrity status, so different park it was.

"I have to go, um, have a nice day," At that I shunshined out of the park while the mothers giggled quietly at my predicament.

I brought Nagato to a playground on the other side of the village. "Sorry about that, Nagato-kun," I said as I set the boy down on a less-full playground.

"It's okay, Nii-san, you were just helping. They were being mean and screaming about it."

"You can go play, I'll wait on that bench, okay?"

"Okay!" He ran off to make new friends.

I sat down on the bench and pulled out the official letter. It was a notice that one of the Uzumaki orphans attending the orphanage had gone missing several weeks before. I put the letter away, perturbed, and forced the issue out of my mind. There was absolutely nothing I could do about that particular problem, though I had a hard time believing that Orochimaru's experiments had started this early.

Ten minutes later, a group of Academy students came looking for me. What the hell? I didn't sign up for being stalked by children!

"There he is!" One of them shouted. I ran over to Nagato, picked him up and shunshined home as fast as I could.

Double-dead-bolting the door jarred the four people obsessing over the seal out of their trances. Nagato ran over to the window and locked it as well.

"Um, Nii-san? What happened?" Minato asked.

"I'm being stalked by children."

The Genin started laughing.

"It's not funny!"

"Actually, it is, Kichiro-kun," Ise chuckled.

"Nagato, back me up!"

"It's not funny!" The boy insisted. "They were all screaming and running at Nii-san and they tried to jump on him and-and—"

"And it's funny!" Fusō smirked. "Anyways, when did you two leave?"

"I left a note and took Nagato out for breakfast; he was bored here."

"Oh! I'm sorry, Nagato-chan!" She cried and scooped the boy into a hug, finally noticing all the evidence of a toddler's boredom around the room. "Did you have fun with Kichiro-kun?"

"Nii-san's the best!" Nagato clapped and started to tell her about everything we did. I peered out of the peephole of the door and was glad to find no one there. "—and then this boy fell and got hurt really, really bad and Nii-san healed him real-quick-like and it was so cool and before that I was playing with all the other kids and before that Nii-san showed me how to spit watermelon seeds—" This earned me a disapproving look from Fusō. "—and he took me to the market and there were so many people but it was a little scary because everyone liked to look at us and I'm really tired right now but I want to have a fun day with Nii-san again, can I? Can I? Please? Please?"

"Of course, you can, Nagato-chan—"

The boy cheered and leapt out of her arms and ran to me. "Nii-san, can we do it again tomorrow? Please? Please? Please?"

"Um, sure, if you want to."

"Yay!"

Minato and Kushina were still laughing at me. Faster than anyone in the room could track, I dashed behind them and slapped the back of their heads like Sakumo seemed to enjoy doing to me then zipped back to my spot by the door.

"Hey!" They shouted indignantly and advanced threateningly. I picked up Nagato and held him between us.

"Watch the kid!" I warned them, laughing.

They split off to flank me. Shit. I forgot they were ninjas as well and I wasn't exactly sure who was the bigger threat. I dodged Kushina's lunge, only to find out it was a feint and have Minato's leg sweep from behind. Still, I was a Chuunin and they were just Genin, so I jumped over the sweep and tossed Nagato at Kushina, leapt off the wall, and broke the rules of physics to jump on Minato's back and hijack the brain signals to his limbs so he went plowing towards Kushina, cursing. She had a choice to save Nagato or herself. She chose Nagato and Minato collided with her and they went tumbling onto a mattress. I crouched beside Nagato and gave the boy a hug.

"Good job, Nagato-kun!" I praised him.

"That was fun! Can we do it again, please? Please? Please?"

"I don't know, have my dear little siblings learned not to laugh at me?" I looked over at Kushina, trying to disentangle herself from Minato, who was temporarily paralyzed.

Fusō took pity on the struggling Genin and helped them untangle themselves while the paralysis wore off.

I leapt to my feet and went to grab Minato's present from where I left it. "Guess what!"

"What?"

"It's Minato's birthday!"

"What?" The entire room exclaimed.

"Happy birthday!" I held out the present.

"Why didn't you tell me?" Kushina demanded of me.

"What? Why are you accusing me? It's _his_ birthday."

"Wait, are you sure it's already my birthday?" Minato demanded.

"Well, today's the day you put on your ninja registration." I shoved the poorly wrapped package into Minato's hands.

Ignoring everyone else, I watched him open it. It was a half-set of what would become his signature kunai. When he opened it, he frowned. "What is it?"

"What is what?" Kushina demanded and snatched it out of his hands. "Yeah, what is this?"

I grinned and grabbed his wrist, politely waiting for him to hand the gift to Kushina. "You keep getting hurt here and here," I pointed to the scars on his hand from where an opponent's kunai had slipped down his own and bit into his hand, and then pushed up his sleeve to reveal the several chunks missing from his forearm where a blade had slipped off his block. "At the very least you're going to lose a few fingers if you don't start using some kind of guard while you're fighting melee, especially since you _only_ seem to fight melee." I grabbed one of the blades and put it in his hand and pulled out my own kunai and slashed at his head. He yelped in surprise and automatically blocked. I twisted my blade and it stuck in between one of the prongs. "See?"

Minato got a look in his eye that told me he was about to do something tricky. He twisted his wrist and jerked the kunai out of my hand, but by the time it fell from my hand, I had immobilized his wrist.

"Nice try." Kushina used to complain to me about all the tricks Minato would use on her in spars, so there wasn't much the boy could do to surprise me, not even with a sneaky knife to the ribs, which I blocked with one of my sticks. "You're going to have to get up earlier than that to pull one over on me."

"Can you spar with me, please?" Minato begged. "I want to see how they work!"

"Sure," I agreed. I didn't spar with them often, but I figured now would be a good time, considering I hoped to be headed to Suna sometime soon. I needed to keep up my skill somehow.

"I wanna watch!" Nagato bounced. "I wanna see Nii-san beat up the evil boy!"

"Your awesome Nee-chan will take you!" Kushina exclaimed.

"Well, you're a bad Nee-chan," Nagato said matter-of-factly.

I ruffled the hair of the two Genin, much to their annoyance. "It's okay, you just need a bit of practice to be better big siblings. You'll figure it out pretty quick."

I let the retaliatory double punch to the gut land, because I kind-of deserved it.

"Don't hurt my Nii-san!" Nagato protested.

"Lesson number one: don't beat up people your little brother or sister likes!" I wheezed. Fusō and Ise seemed to be dying of laughter in the background.

"You beat up Sakumo-sensei and we like him!" Minato protested.

"I've hit him a total of one time, and that was before either of you said more than a sentence to him," I deadpanned. "Besides, once you're the best nii-san, you can get away with almost anything. Minato, you want that spar or not?" Nagato hugged my legs.

"I'll get my stuff," Minato ran into the designated 'ninja room' with Kushina on his heels.

"You two want to come?" I asked the two adults.

"No!" They both waved their arms and took a step back.

"You kids have fun, and don't get hurt," Ise said. "Spend the rest of the day out, we're going to work on making this place actually livable, and clean up the blood-splattered and bug-ridden mattresses."

"They're not that bad!" I protested.

"No, they're worse, but for two kiddos living alone, you've done a wonderful job." Fusō crouched in front of me and placed both hands on my shoulders. "You've got someone to take care of you now, so relax and have fun."

For a minute, I stood there stunned. In my old life, I had seen my father only once or twice a year, he always seemed to be out of the country for one classified deployment or another, and my mother had died at some point while I was in fourth grade. She was a shameless drunk and rarely gave a damn what I did or where I went, as long as I showed up at five o'clock sharp for dinner. Besides that, I was on my own, and only the fact that I was scared shitless of my father, who treated me more like a soldier than a son, stopped me from ending up in a jail cell before I turned fifteen. It might have been more due to the fact that I lived on a military base under the influence of a bunch of future Marines that I stayed on the straight and narrow, but I guess I'd never know.

Now, to have someone who all but abandoned their calling for a kid and a few unwanted orphans promising something of a real family for the first time in my life—I leaned forward and hugged her, appreciating the sentiment. Slowly and deliberately, she hugged me back. "Thank you—Ka-chan."

"You're welcome."

"We gotta find a bigger place though. I don't wanna sleep on that little bed forever with Minato _and_ Kushina."

"Certainly. The clan is still alive after all, even if you're all children right now." She kissed the top of my head. "Now go enjoy your spar."


	13. Chapter 13

"You ready?" I asked Minato.

"Yes."

"Are you sure?"

"Yes!"

"Absolutely sure?"

"Would you stop whatever you're doing and just start already?"

"I don't think you're ready."

"Shut it, Kichiro."

"Half the fight is in your head, Minato, so get your head on straight, then we'll start."

He rolled his eyes at Kushina, only to find she wasn't there. "Kai!" He shouted, dispelling the Genjutsu.

"Now, are you actually ready to focus?" I asked.

"How the hell am I supposed to do that? You keep messing with my head so how do I _know_ when I'm ready?" Minato gave up and threw his kunai into the ground in frustration. I winced. I had gone a bit too far in trying to psych him out. Sakumo, in his ANBU getup appeared out of sight from everyone but me.

 _Sound familiar?_ He signed. I threw a senbon at him. Minato turned to follow my gaze, confused when he didn't see anyone.

"What are you looking at?"

"Nothing, someone was just trying to mess with me." I released the Genjutsu layers I had woven around Minato. "Okay, close your eyes." Minato huffed, but did so and I repeated Sakumo's lesson from a year previously, almost word-for-word. "First, you have to know exactly what you are capable of, every single tool you have at your disposal." I laid my hand flat against the center of his chest. "You have to balance your ego with your humility to get the most accurate picture of your capabilities as you can. Know where you're strong and where you're weak. For example, you're extremely smart and fast, but you don't have very much chakra to work with. I'm sure you can go into more detail by yourself."

I moved my hand to press two fingers against his forehead.

"Second, you have to always know, beyond a shadow of a doubt, that you can win. You have to believe you can beat me and keep believing no matter how many times you get beaten back. There is no substitute for absolute confidence."

"You're a Chuunin, I'm a Genin!" Minato's eyes flew open. "You've fought in a war! You're in the Bingo Book! How am I supposed to win?"

"Less than two days after I became a Genin I beat a Tokubetsu Jōnin who'd been a ninja for as long as I've been alive. There's always a way to win if you think hard enough, but you absolutely cannot win if you don't believe you can, got it?"

"I-I think so?"

"Good, close your eyes." When his eyes closed, I put the kunai back in Minato's hand and wrapped my own hands around both of his. "The last thing you have to do is actually win. It might take a while, but trust me, one day, you'll be able to kick my ass across the village and back. Alright? Now, keep all that in mind and focus. Go all out. Don't worry about hurting me, the ANBU are here to make sure nothing gets out of hand. Now, are you ready?"

After a second, Minato nodded. I backed away and settled into a ready stance as he opened his eyes.

"Begin."

He flew towards me, weaving his blades in an almost untraceable pattern, for someone who didn't have a sensei terrified they wouldn't be able to keep up on the battlefield they would be forced onto. I simply blocked with one of the sticks and ducked under his other swing, tripping him. He turned the fall into a handspring and we squared off again.

"You're getting better, Minato, but I'm pretty sure Academy students could do better than you." Yes, I was goading him. To my annoyance, it was working. Kushina may have fought better when riled up, but Minato tended to make stupid mistakes, like charging me with an angry shout. I substituted myself for a water clone and crouched in one of the trees, pulling out my slacklining rope from a storage seal sewn inside of one of the pockets of my Chuunin vest. I quickly strung it across the clearing, hidden by a simple and effective Genjutsu. Sakumo had nearly fallen for it once, and he helped me learn it.

Minato cursed as the water clone dissolved just before it nearly knocked him out, soaking him with water. I dropped silently to the ground and slid underneath it while the boy spun around, frantically searching for me.

"Headhunter no Jutsu!" I responded happily, but quickly jumped out of the way because I knew both he and Kushina could get out of the trap even though I wasn't sure exactly how they managed it. I concealed myself with another Genjutsu and gave him another water clone to fight while I figured out some new, creative way to win. I dashed around the clearing and slipped into Sakumo's hiding spot.

"No," he said immediately.

"Come on! Some Suna nin nearly got _you_ with this trick and you wouldn't want him to fall for it on an actual mission!"

I may have been better, simply because I had a single teacher focusing on me and tailoring what I learned to my strengths and weaknesses while Minato had to vie for attention among several dozen other students. After a few weeks with Kushina, he figured out how to _never_ fall for any trick more than once and that carried over to fighting, thankfully. I wanted to know how he did it, because Kushina and I had probably played thousands of tricks on him and not one worked twice.

Sakumo just glared at me. "Fine, I'll stand there and look scary. My shift ends soon, so don't wear yourself out too much, I want to see how far you've gotten on your pet project."

"Thanks."

I dispelled my water clone. Minato was getting increasingly frustrated by the fact he was spending more time fighting, and losing to, clones than the real me.

"I'd say you were doing well, but for someone who wants to be Hokage, you really suck, Minato." I cocked my head to the side and started to circle him. My two shadow clones, which had taken far too much chakra to create than I was comfortable with crouched in their respective hiding places, one on my slackline near the tree and the other a few steps behind me. "You know, those kunai aren't magical, I know you have more in your arsenal than that. I'm not sure this is worth my time since you're so outmatched and not even giving it your all." I waved my hand dismissively and turned around, replacing myself with the clone behind me. Minato lunged forward and slapped an exploding tag onto my clone's back. The clone exploded and I took a step into the explosion then replaced myself with Sakumo then with my clone on the slackline.

"Holy shit!" Minato exclaimed and leapt backwards from the unexpected appearance of an ANBU from the smoke.

His back hit the rope just as I jumped and landed on it, making the rope sink a good three feet. We slid together and I slid off, but Minato didn't fall for the slingshot trick, he grabbed the rope and grinned at me. I barely managed to leap clear before he _somehow_ channeled a giant lightning bolt into the rope. Sakumo disappeared into thin air as Minato swung down and landed in front of me. We were back where we started.

"Clever, but not clever enough," I told him and tapped my chest. He looked down at his own chest and froze as he noticed the explosive note. It was set to detonate the next time he channeled chakra, or moved more than a few inches. I didn't dare activate it, mostly because I wasn't exactly sure how to safely deactivate it yet.

Minato was not happy. "When?" He demanded.

I pulled the note off him and stuck it in my pocket, grinning. "When you landed on the slackline," I told him.

"That thing is evil, Sakumo-sensei is a sadistic bastard for making you do all those things on that damn rope."

"I take offense to that!" I retorted. "Slacklining is the best part of training with Sakumo!" It had been over a year since I last legitimately lost my balance, so the training had completely paid off. "Anyway, Minato, good job, but don't get riled up when you're taunted, it ruins your concentration. I have to go to training. Will you be alright getting back on your own with Nagato?"

"I want to come!" Nagato ran up and tugged on my haori.

I crouched down. "I'm sorry, Nagato, but you're going to have to stay with Kushina and Minato for a few hours, maybe days, okay?"

"But they're boring!"

"I'll tell you a secret, they can be really fun if you give them another chance, alright?"

"But Nii-san!"

"I'll see you soon, Nagato, goodbye!" I left before he could say anything more.

(-_-)

I waited for about an hour on the training ground I usually met Sakumo on. Most of the time, I sat and meditated. I hovered in a state where I could hear Kurama lecturing me on going easy on Minato and not destroying him right out of the gate, which I ignored, while remaining perfectly aware of my surroundings, at least from a chakra perspective. Chakra was the lifeblood of this world. Without it, nothing could live, which was why chakra exhaustion could be so dangerous. Out of nowhere, someone touched my shoulder.

I knocked the hand away and stumbled out if reach, not that it would have done me much good against an enemy. When I recognized Sakumo wearing his Jōnin uniform, I scowled.

"You're in ANBU," I greeted.

"You aren't supposed to know that."

"Yeah, but you didn't have to be the person to tell me they finally had a proper guard."

"You would have attacked anyone else."

"Not if they could prove their identity first or one of them vouched for whoever it was."

Sakumo rolled his eyes.

"Why do you want me here?"

"The Hokage wants me to talk you out of forming any kind of relationship with the Kyuubi."

"It's not going to work."

"He knows. I also want to know why you're doing this."

"Is that a question or a statement."

"For now, a statement."

"But you still want me to answer it."

He didn't answer. "No. I don't want you to be making a mistake."

"I'm not the one making a mistake! The Kazekage ordered the _torture_ of two eight-year-old _children_!"

"They're shinobi, Kichiro. They understood what they signed up for. I made sure the entire team knew they would end up targeted because of you, me, Jiraiya, and possibly Shimizu."

"They're _eight_! They're Genin! They were tortured for no reason!"

"So, you're going to wage a war."

"If they go after her and Minato, how long will it be before they go after Nagato?"

"Kichiro, you're plotting murder! Who knows how many innocents will die once you start that battle? This isn't you, Kichiro, this isn't a mission you're being told to complete, this is entirely your plan."

"I know."

"Do you? You barely have a handful of kills, Kichiro, all of which were in self-defense. You can't even beat me, what makes you think you can win against the most powerful Kage in Suna's history?"

"He uses the Iron Sand, it's in the Bingo Book. He controls metal. My primary weapons are wooden sticks, which are made of Hashirama wood and reinforced with seals. My senbon are made of glass, similarly reinforced. I just don't carry any metal for him to use against me with his magnet release. Not to mention, I'll have the Kyuubi helping me."

"If it doesn't try and escape."

"He won't."

"How do you know you can trust a creature of hatred?"

"He's not a 'creature of hatred' any more than you or I!"

Sakumo shook his head. "It will take you a long time to convince anyone of that."

Scowling, I fell onto my back and glared up at the rainclouds.

"I'm not here to debate with you. The Hokage came up with a potential plan that might just lure out the Kazekage without as much collateral damage as it would for you to just march into Suna and commit suicide."

"Fine, what is it?"

"No, you need to be updated first."

"On what?"

"Somehow, the Ame leader, Hanzō, caught wind of your little stunt with the Uzumaki family."

"What? Was he upset I stole his quarry? He's an idiot for targeting humanitarians."

"No, somehow he knew of the boy's dormant Rinnegan."

"The hell? How?"

"Unknown."

"That throws a wrench in everything."

"It does. The Sandaime suspects that Ame will join forces with Iwa, which provides an ideal opportunity on two fronts. Suna and Kiri made an alliance against Konoha. Publicly shifting our attention to Iwa and Ame will invite Suna and Kiri to attack. Once they commit to an action, the Hokage himself plans to join the fighting."

"About time."

"This is the last time I am going to warn you, Kichiro." Sakumo's voice gained an edge I had only heard a handful of times. "You will be civil when speaking of and with him or there will be consequences."

I huffed.

"He plans on decimating the Kiri lines and forcing them out of the war, but in order to do that, he needs to make sure the Suna line will hold in the meantime."

"Clever. What about Kumo?"

"The second they hear there is a Kage on the front lines, they'll calm down and most likely take advantage of the opening against Kiri."

"Right, but won't it make Konoha look desperate to have Kage on the front lines? It might make the other countries paranoid enough for their own Kage to come out."

"None of the other Kage are a match for our Sandaime."

I shrugged. "The Kazekage could give him a run for his money."

"I doubt that, but considering Suna's penchant for poison, it could become a close match, which is why his advisors refuse to let him attend the Suna front as well."

"So, the plan is to stack the Iwa front, lure Suna and Kiri into an attack and attack Kiri in return? What about Suna?"

"That's my next deployment. In case you've forgotten, I've gained quite the reputation in the past few years and I have the skills to back it up."

"How's the Iwa front going to appear stacked if one of Konoha's prominent Jōnin are headed to Suna?"

"The Sandaime's students, as well as a handful of other prominent Jōnin are headed to Iwa."

"Village defenses?"

"The Hokage's old teammates are remaining to run and defend the village."

"Good for them."

"I want to see what you can do, whether you're ready to actually fight on the front lines or not. Shimizu and Inuzuka are already out on their next mission and if you pass, you'll head out with me to Suna."

"Fine, what's the test?"

"I already know your raw Ninjutsu and Genjutsu capabilities inside and out, but your Taijutsu is constantly evolving. I want to test that."

"With or without weapons?"

"Your chakra must stay inside your body. No other rules."

"You're a Jōnin, this isn't fair."

"Yet you want to face down a Kage?"

"With the Kyuubi and all of my tricks."

"Ah, yes, your tricks. I want to see how good you've gotten without them." Sakumo stood up and held out a hand to help me up.

"So I'm assuming I can't use the Kyuubi."

"Most certainly not. We don't need a village emergency." Apparently he didn't want to wait for me to get up on my own and grabbed the front of my vest to pull me to my feet.

"Whatever." I pulled out my sticks and he drew a bokken. It was a testament to my skill that he needed to limit himself for fear of causing permanent injury to me. "On your mark."

"Begin."

There was a moment of absolute stillness. I took a deep breath.

Sakumo leapt forward and swung his bokken at my head. I ducked and retaliated with a strike to the knee, but the bokken appeared like magic and blocked it, nearly knocking it out of my hand with the strength of the strike. Luckily, I learned a long time ago to hold on to my sticks with chakra instead, which somehow reduced the strength of the impact. It didn't make sense but I did it anyways. The next few seconds I spent blocking what felt like a hundreds attacks at a time. Sakumo was fast and I was barely fast enough to defend. I was quite good at multitasking. Between foiling a clever trip and sending a wild punch at Sakumo's nose to hide an attempt to break a rib or two, I noticed several ANBU surrounding the Hokage and his advisors.

I couldn't touch Sakumo, but it wasn't for lack of trying. I took full advantage of my size and flexibility, as well as juicing up my strength enough that any hit would count, not that any landed, not even the senbon I threw with my foot, hid in my shadow, and came from a direction Sakumo couldn't possibly have seen. He only threw the senbon back at me with a smirk and it landed in my arm. That led to a nasty list of invectives. They were mostly in English, which was lucky for me because of the growing audience. I was beginning to suspect Minato, and possibly Kushina had a hand in it, had the brilliant idea of bringing Nagato to watch me get my ass kicked.

When I noticed an unfamiliar woman emerge from the shadows of the trees, I began to suspect. When two Jōnin appeared between two trees to stop me from using them as cover, I knew. For some reason, a number of people wanted to see Sakumo fight. Or me, but I was betting on the former. During one of the pauses where Sakumo and I just circled each other, I asked.

"How many people did you invite to watch?"

"Pretty much every shinobi in the village. The Chuunin exams were cancelled and since it was partially your fault, everyone needed to see a good fight without the future of the village hanging in the balance."

"Asshole. You could've told me."

"Then you wouldn't've shown up. You could have known if you bothered to stop by the Chuunin base."

"I don't even know where the Chuunin base is."

"Your loss."

Yeah, he was going down hard. The Kyuubi turned on a rolling stream of advice, most of which I adopted, allowing myself to shift into katas I shouldn't have had any way of knowing. Under the influence of the Kyuubi's chakra, my vision shifted slightly and my ability to sense increased a hundredfold.

Sakumo disengaged and swapped his bokken for his actual blade.

"Calm down, Kichiro," he warned, circling. "I told you no using the Kyuubi."

"Come on, it's the only chance I have!" I complained. My voice was a bit deeper and harsher than normal, which was probably part of the problem.

"Your little sister is here; she might get hurt."

I caught a glimpse of myself in Sakumo's blade. The irises of my eyes had changed from bright green to burning red and the pupils narrowed into feral slits. "I'm in control, Sakumo, the Kyuubi is just giving a little friendly advice."

 ** _I'd call this a bit more than advice, little rat,_** the Kyuubi commented.

"Okay, fine, it's a bit of a strength and speed boost as well, but I promise I'm still me, just a little better."

"This isn't funny, Kichiro."

"Scared of a little Chuunin?" I taunted.

"I'm concerned about this 'friendly advice.'"

I opened my mouth to respond when said 'friendly advice' turned up something not-so-friendly. "Shit!" I screamed. The Kyuubi's chakra turned up several hostile ninjas _beneath our feet_. The sudden appearance of the Kyuubi's chakra had spooked them into action.

Kushina screamed. I turned and used every ounce of speed I could dredge up. At my shout, Minato had managed to throw Nagato at the nearest Jōnin, then Kushina barreled him out of the way, only to be caught by a wicked-looking kunoichi. I recognized her as the daughter of the woman who occasionally gave me free dango.

"Don't you dare move a muscle, Uzumaki, or I'll rip your precious sister's throat out. That goes for everyone else here!"

I put on my best act, hoping the consequences wouldn't be too severe, and laughed. "You think some pathetic little child would be able force me, the _Kyuubi no Yōko_ , to bend to your will?" To my surprise, _everyone_ bought the act. Except Kushina. She knew my acting skills inside and out and had seen my best Kyuubi imitation dozens of times, albeit before he was sealed inside of me.

The kunoichi paled.

I slowly drew one of my sticks and used the Kyuubi's chakra, with a bit of his help, to mold a blade onto it. I pointed it at the kunoichi. The kunoichi lifted Kushina into the air to cover her vitals. Unfortunately for the kunoichi, I was a medic. Sliding a blade between organs was simple, especially when Kushina was discreetly pointing at exactly the right place. Faster than the kunoichi could track, I lunged forward. The blade slid through Kushina's body, then through the kunoichi's. The Kyuubi yanked his chakra away from me. Any longer and I would probably have done myself serious damage. I jerked my stick out of their bodies, knocked the kunoichi out, and caught Kushina before she collapsed. The moment all three of us hit the ground, chaos erupted.


	14. Chapter 14

While I was having my little acting debut, the kunoichi had strung up a nice and pretty Genjutsu that showed me completely losing control and attacking my sister. A bit of cleverness and dumb luck on the kunoichi's part had me grabbing Kushina and landing on top of her exactly like in the Genjutsu. Even the Hokage had been caught in it. His overreaction, using his entire formidable strength to order me to regain control the Kyuubi, automatically trapped me in my mindscape trying to reverse something that never happened.

Luckily, the Jōnin were still somewhat dazed by the release of the Genjutsu that their attacks were slow enough for Kushina to see and roll us both out of the way.

The fact that she refused to let go of me was probably the only reason I wasn't immediately locked up in the highest security vault the village had to offer.

It took me five minutes to escape from my own mindscape, which I found to be incredibly annoying.

"Let me go!" Kushina screamed into my chest, her arms and legs wrapped tightly around my torso as several Jōnin tried to pry her off.

I moaned too weak to sit up.

"Nii-san?" She asked. Her grip around me loosened and someone managed to wrench her arms out from around me. She screamed and sent my chakra across her skin and gave the people holding onto her nasty chakra burns. Her arms snapped back around my neck and she smashed my face into her neck. If I had been a full-size adult, I probably could have let her turn all clingy. Unfortunately, I had a child's body and Kushina was inadvertently suffocating me.

"—breathe!" I managed, barely audible.

"Sorry!" Kushina loosened her grip but didn't release me.

I took a deep breath and ignored the fighting around us. Suddenly someone picked us both up and ran. I couldn't even cling to Kushina. I hoped it was a Konoha shinobi carrying us away from the fighting, but something inside me knew it wasn't.

Without any warning, the arms carrying us were torn away. Someone managed to catch Kushina by the hair, but the grip failed and we hit the ground hard. Well, I hit the ground, Kushina landed on top of me. She quickly rolled off me and felt my pulse, calling my name.

"Minato! Help! He's barely responding! Oh, Kami!" She jerked and her hands tightened around my wrist.

"No!" Minato cried suddenly.

"Minato!" Kushina screamed and the sound of kunai striking flesh sounded above me.

I struggled to move, but my body refused to respond.

 ** _Stay down, little rat._**

 _Minato's hurt! I have to help him!_

 ** _By killing yourself? Be patient._**

Minato slumped over me. The kunai had gone nearly all the way through his chest. A combination of both his and Kushina's blood had all but soaked the front of my Chuunin vest.

 _There's no more time to wait!_ "—shina," I managed, channeling medical chakra into my free hand.

"Nii-san!" Somehow she got the message and grabbed my wrist. After a second, she laid my palm over the hole where the kunai hit Minato's heart.

I barely managed to heal his heart before my chakra spluttered out. "—ospital." Minato wouldn't live for much longer if he didn't get the help of a medic who wasn't half-dead very soon.

Minato's fingers twisted into my haori.

"Leave us alone!" Kushina screamed. Someone kicked my side.

"Pathetic. The kid hailed as a hero can't even save himself." The person grabbed my hair and lifted me to my feet. My body refused to respond to my orders to fight.

"Leave him alone!" Kushina begged.

"Leave him alone!" The shinobi mocked. "Do you recognize me, little girl?" The strain on my scalp opened one of my eyes wide enough to see the shinobi holding me. This was not good. It was undoubtedly Ebizō, one of the Honored Siblings of Sunagakure. I recognized him from the Bingo Book. This was not good.

 ** _Now you can fight._** All the feeling seemed to rush back into my body at once. It was painful, but worth it.

 _Thank you._ "Run!" I growled at Kushina, opening my eyes just enough to make eye contact. "Minato—" Ebizō slammed a fist into my gut.

Kushina got the message once the Kyuubi's chakra started to lick at my fingers. Her eyes widened in terror. Without hesitation, she lunged for Minato, scooped him up and fled. Ebizō made the mistake of dropping me to go after her. By the time my feet hit the ground, my hands had flashed through a jutsu that turned the ground around me into mud. He sunk into it before he could make it three steps and both Minato and Kushina got away. I knew we were outside of the village even if I didn't exactly know where. If I could just make a big enough commotion, someone would have to come running.

"Go after me, fine, it's my job. I can deal with it. Go after my siblings and we have a problem. I'll give you three choices. One: stay here and take your chances fighting me. Two: go after my siblings and the _best_ scenario is that you die. Three: leave and tell your Kazekage that he will be dead by the end of this war."

Ebizō pulled himself out of the mud.

I jerked my sticks out of their holsters.

"You can't win, little boy."

"I only have to last two minutes, then they'll be too far away for you to catch."

"Then you'll be captured."

"I don't care." I took a step backwards out of the mud and let it harden back into the ground. "Whenever you're ready, I await your decision."

"Suna," someone snarled behind me. I suddenly had a very, very bad feeling as I glanced over my shoulder to see two Iwa nin accompanied by two nin from Ame, all of which I recognized as Jōnin from the Bingo Book. A second Suna nin appeared and I recognized Chiyo with Minato over her shoulder and a barely conscious Kushina under her arm. Shit. Shit. Shit. I was trapped in the center and the Kyuubi's chakra was covering mine like a second skin. By the end of the week, the entire shinobi world would know I was the Kyuubi Jinchuuriki. Shit. Two Kiri nin appeared. Double shit.

"Looks like we're a little late to the party," the _Sandaime Raikage_ and a Kumo Jōnin from the Bingo Book appeared to complete the circle around me. Triple shit.

 ** _This is a very bad situation._**

 _You think? I'm not even sure you could survive for long if a fight breaks out._

 ** _You have potentially critical information._**

 _They don't know that._

"What little Genin do we have here?" The Raikage asked. Considering only his own jutsu could make it past the man's shield and the fact that the man was a _Kage_ meant that he probably had the right to start off the conversation, if anyone.

I didn't bother responding, everyone here knew exactly who I was, the haori and red hair was a dead giveaway.

"You look familiar, little boy, tell me, what's your name again?" He taunted.

I forced myself to think. There was always a way out. There had to be. There had to be something I was better at than anyone here.

 ** _Face it, kid, if these people have half a brain between them, they'll go after you first then fight over you like a prize to be won. You're a smart kid, but you can't outwit ten ninjas by yourself and your body just can't win, even if I'm in control. Your best bet is to go quietly and hope for a chance to escape later on._**

 _It doesn't mean I have to go gentle into that good night._

"I asked you your name, boy," the Raikage snapped impatiently. I grinned.

I probably would have gotten slapped upside the head for the cheek I had planned if Sakumo was there to hear me. Unfortunately, I was more concerned by the fact there were ten enemy nin surrounding me and the two most important people in the village, in my opinion, were dying in enemy hands. I turned to Chiyo. "You will let me heal those two Genin or I release the Kyuubi right now and none of us make it out alive."

 ** _You will not! You still owe me, little rat._**

 _Good to know my bluffing skills are still intact. You make a very good threat, so quit your griping._

The Kyuubi subsided into angry grumbling. Chiyo threw Minato at me. I caught him, not even sliding on the ground, and knelt with him propped against me, mostly to start draining the blood from his lungs. I quickly tore his shirt open, feeling nauseous. I could heal the wounds, but by that time, he would be dead via exsanguination. I no longer felt paranoid for looking up Minato's blood type. He was B-positive, the same as Kushina and myself. It would work. I used one of Minato's kunais to cut a three-inch line into the inside of my left wrist, as well as an identical line into Minato's, then pressed the cuts together in a bastardization of a blood transfusion. Sure, chakra accomplished what tubes and needles would normally do, as well as kept my blood flowing into him, but if Tsunade caught me trying an untested stunt like it, she would probably skin me alive. With my right hand, I turned to healing the two holes in his chest.

There were never full healings on the battlefield. As soon as I knew Minato was stable enough to remain not-dead for the time being, if in horrible pain and unable to move, I laid him on the ground and finished the blood transfusion. In an hour, he would either be dead by the hand of one of the enemies surrounding us or in Konoha's hospital in emergency surgery. I couldn't risk any more chakra in case an actual fight broke out and I was forced to defend him.

"Now the girl!" I demanded.

"Trade."

The Raikage chuckled behind me. "Give him his sister. I want to see what he does."

Well, that would be a mistake, Mr. Raikage, but go ahead, you don't have to know I know exactly how to counter your best jutsu. He had the scar over his chest so I was sure I knew what he was going to pull on me, considering I was a Jinchuuriki and he had to counter the Hachibi on a semi-regular basis.

I caught Kushina. It only took me a few seconds to patch her up as well, and only another minute to complete a second blood transfusion.

I stood up, slightly shaky on my feet, but the Kyuubi's crude healing fortified me after a few seconds.

I faced the Raikage, rightly deeming him the biggest threat, and stood with both Minato and Kushina lying between my feet. The Kyuubi's chakra coated my skin, a few inches thick, and formed a cocoon around Minato and Kushina, careful not to touch their skin.

"You can't win this, _Kichiro-kun_." The Raikage started to form his supposedly impenetrable defense.

"No, I'm certain _I_ can't, but the Kyuubi is much more powerful than the Hachibi."

"So, you're a perfect Jinchuuriki then? That's quite the accomplishment for one so young. I see I originally targeted the wrong sibling."

"You most certainly did. I'm willing to forgive faults against me, but the moment you so much as threaten my family, you will die."

"Was that a death threat to me?"

"Certainly."

"Big words for such a little boy."

Kushina pushed herself up and started to use the blood soaking Minato to draw a desperate seal on her palm. Luckily, she wouldn't need to use it and I couldn't resist my own little amusement. "You seem to be laboring under the delusion that I'm going to, what was the phrase, come quietly? I can tell you this, I have no intention of going to Azkaban—"

"He's stalling," one of the Kiri nin snapped.

"Am I?" I grinned. Each of them had shadows pooling around their feet. I released my control over the Kyuubi's chakra. Sakumo leapt down and grabbed my wrist before I could run forward to kill the Raikage with Minato's fancy new kunai.

"I think peace negotiations would be more helpful at this point than revenge, Kichiro."

"Fine, _Sensei_ ," I snapped back and returned Minato's kunai. Sakumo kept a firm grip on my shoulder as if he thought I was going to attack anyways.

More than a few eyes widened at my address. Sakumo was probably expecting it and I got the feeling he liked being called 'sensei'. I made a note to call him sensei in front of any enemies if the sudden cautiousness they regarded me with was anything to go by. Then again, the White Fang was one of Konoha's more feared ninjas and if he was passing on his skill, there would probably soon be a second. Combine that with the fact I was a S-ranked combination of Tsunade and Sakumo in the making, with a nearly limitless chakra supply, I was sure that, if any of those assembled got word back to their home village, I would be immediately bumped up from a D-rank threat to a B-rank in the Bingo Books.

The Hokage himself stepped between me and the Raikage.

"Very clever, old monkey," the Raikage sneered. "But you can't force me to sign any treaties."

"No, but the Shodai Hokage's offer still stands."

Sakumo's hand tightened on my shoulder in surprise, while the Raikage's expression turned stony. No one else in the clearing seemed to understand the reference. When I figured it out, my eyes widened in surprise. Sakumo's grip tightened painfully as I opened my mouth to demand how in the nine circles of Hades the Hokage planned to fight and seal the Hachibi, at least without an Uzumaki Fūinjutsu master to help him.

"Uzumaki-kun, Hatake-san, my office. Genin, report to the hospital and _stay there_. Jōnin, I want all enemies taken to the holding cells in the interrogation department. Bring the Raikage to the basement. Kill them if they resist."

"Congratulations on becoming the first perfect Jinchuuriki," the Raikage said as Sakumo steered me away. "I'll be sure to keep my eye on you, Uzumaki."

I knew Kumo operated on a slightly different system than the rest of the hidden villages, but the Raikage's acknowledgment, even if it did have a thinly veiled threat behind it, was not something I expected. Then again, the Raikage probably had more experience with the power of the tailed beasts than any other living person at this point.

"Hokage-sama!" Kushina interrupted. She stood up, swaying slightly and holding her side where I had stabbed her. She wasn't going to be released from the hospital for a while, considering it could be several days before I'd be allowed to see her. She pressed several seal tags into the Hokage's hand and would have pitched sideways if he hadn't caught her.

"Right on time, thank you, Kushina-chan."

A smallish ANBU appeared at the Hokage's shoulder and gently pulled Kushina onto his back. When he bent down to pick up Minato, who was barely conscious, Sakumo continued to drag me away. Once we were out of sight and earshot, Sakumo slapped the back of my head.

"What was that for?" I demanded, swaying. The Hokage's order felt like it was still screwing with my balance.

"Principle."

"Hey, it all turned out just fine!"

"I couldn't care less. Your Genin sister getting abducted is one thing, but you? You're in for one hell of a training regime once this war is over." Sakumo swung me up onto his back. "We need to make two stops before we head to the Hokage tower."

"Go ahead."

The first stop was to an unfamiliar house in the middle of a small clan compound.

"This is your house, isn't it?"

"Yes, it is. Kichiro, meet my wife, Kaori," Sakumo introduced me to the woman running out of the front door. I recognized her as one of the first spectators in our spar earlier. "She's a Jōnin, so don't be getting any funny ideas about pranking my house." I noticed the blood splattered across the front of her vest indicating she had fought earlier. She was also limping, but didn't seem to be in any unbearable pain.

"Wait a minute—you're _married_?"

"I'm not even going to dignify that with a response."

"At least she's hot."

Sakumo dropped me on my ass for that little comment.

"You know, I've never seen anyone get you riled up like that, Sakumo," Kaori said after greeting him with a kiss.

"So, when's the baby coming?" I asked sarcastically.

"You're nine," Kaori deadpanned.

"So? I'm a medic."

She laughed. "I like your student, Sakumo. What took you so long to bring him around?"

"I never would have if I didn't have a choice. Did you get it?"

"Of course, I got it, what do you take me for?"

"Well, I handed it off for a reason."

"No, you were worried your student wouldn't go all out against anyone else he fought so you made a call." Kaori handed Sakumo something I couldn't quite see.

"Alright, what's going on?" I demanded, suspicious.

"Nothing, we have one more stop to make." Sakumo picked me up off the ground and pulled me onto his back again and took off. The second we landed outside my apartment, Fusō burst out of the door.

"Thank heavens you're alright! What about Minato and Kushina?" She asked worriedly.

"Is Nagato—" I began.

"He's fine."

"Minato and Kushina are headed to the hospital. They'll be perfectly fine."

"We're not here to catch up, Uzumaki-san. The hospital needs experienced assistants, and I'm sure you would like to go visit." Sakumo pulled out two scrolls. "The Hokage has formally requested that you and your husband offer your assistance there."

"What about Nagato?"

"The details can be worked out at a later date."

Fusō took the two scrolls. "Thank you, Hatake-san."

Sakumo nodded once and jumped away.

"What the hell is going on?" I demanded when we landed outside the Hokage tower.

"Classified." I blinked and we were inside the Hokage's office.

The Hokage was already sitting behind his desk as Sakumo set me on my feet. I slumped into the nearest chair.

"Your arrogance almost ruined a trap a year in the making," the Hokage snapped at me. "Though I have to commend you for inadvertently bringing it to fruition in the process."

I felt like the rug had just been pulled out from underneath me. "What plan?" I snapped.

"Luring the Raikage here."

"What does that have to do with the price of tea in China?"

"I beg your pardon?"

"What does the Raikage have to do with anything?"

The Hokage appeared annoyed.

"With all due respect, Hokage-sama, he didn't have clearance for any of the pertinent details and has no way to deduce the situation," Sakumo placated.

"Acknowledged. Kichiro-kun, approximately a year ago, Konoha received a report that the Hachibi had escaped from its host in Kumo. They needed a new host for the Bijū. We suspected they would target one of the remaining Uzumaki in Konoha. We wrongly assumed it would be you, considering you were older and stronger than your sister. A few months later, as you're aware, your sister was kidnapped through an intentional opening in the village defenses, which was why no one was alerted when you went after your sister."

My jaw clenched angrily.

"Knowing the character of the Raikage, we have made it somewhat of a priority to hold as many Kumo Jōnin prisoner as we are capable of. As of today, several dozen Jōnin have been captured. We have sent ransom offers, but until now, there has been no response. We were aware that Kumo was planning a rescue mission of some kind, considering the number of captured became a ridiculous percentage of their fighting force."

The percentage was probably only in the single-digits but to even possess one percent of an opposing country's Jōnin force was unheard of.

"The Raikage puts his shinobi before himself and it was only reasonable that he would personally lead a rescue force. For the past week-and-a-half, we have suspected that he may be in the area, but we had no possible way to draw him out. At the same time, we were alerted that a combination of Suna and Kiri forces were preparing to attack. With that information, I ordered Sakumo to lure them to the edge of the village, by purposely dropping hints to the Suna nin tailing him."

"So that's why you were explaining a war strategy to me in the middle of an unsecured training ground."

"The entire conversation was scripted," the Hokage assured me. "We cancelled the Chuunin Exams and put out word of a spar, coded so that Konoha shinobi would know the basics of the plan and would play along. Sakumo began the spar with you and we waited."

"That was why I told you no Ninjutsu," Sakumo explained.

"When you pulled out the Kyuubi's power, you unveiled a dangerous Iwa operative, which nearly made the entire plan fall apart. Fortunately for everyone, except perhaps you, her Genjutsu affected everyone no matter the village. During the ensuing confusion, you were kidnapped by Suna. At that point, I feared the entire plan had fallen apart, until you drew on the Kyuubi's power while surrounded. After that, it was a simple task to rout the Suna-Kiri invasion and send out a capture force. Your confidence had us worried the Raikage would catch on to our ruse. Fortunately, he didn't, and everyone, excepting a few Kiri nin, lived to tell the tale."

In my opinion, Konoha just got incredibly lucky the half-assed plan actually worked.


	15. Chapter 15

"Out of curiosity, how did you get the Iwa agent to drop her guard?" Sakumo asked curiously.

"I pretended to be the Kyuubi."

The Hokage and Sakumo flinched.

"Oh, for heaven's sake! Quit being such sticks in the mud. It worked, didn't it?"

"Kid, watching you start to transform and attack your little sister is not a pleasant experience," Sakumo commented.

"Yeah, well, don't get caught in a Genjutsu next time. I wasn't caught. Wanna guess why? The Kyuubi, so I would appreciate it if you at least talked about him civilly while in my presence. Better yet, let's include him in the conversation!"

 ** _I have nothing to say to those creatures._**

 _I'm making them be nice, so you need to return the favor._

 ** _I'll return the favor when the favor's been given._**

"Enough about the Kyuubi, Kichiro-kun."

I scowled. "At some point before I make Jōnin I'm going to have to transform, at least to see what I can do, so get over it, I'm not going to go insane."

The Hokage just changed the subject. "Hatake-san has insisted that you are ready for promotion to Tokubetsu Jōnin."

I rolled my eyes. "There has to be a mission requirement for a promotion like that."

"Mission count means nothing. Today's spar was supposed to determine whether you were ready."

"I don't specialize in combat. If anything, I specialize in medical Ninjutsu."

"I am aware, but several other things have also been brought to my attention. You are pursuing an interest in Fūinjutsu, correct?"

"No, that's Kushina. And Minato by extension."

"The seals you've developed claim differently."

"Just a few explosive notes and storage seals." It wasn't a lie, I had only made a few explosive notes and one or two storage seals.

"I have invested more than a passing interest in Fūinjutsu myself and I can assure you, these are not explosive notes." He held up a stack of my notes.

Shit. How did he find those? They were supposed to be sealed away with the rest of the Uzumaki records. I scowled in response while the Hokage made a show of shuffling through my notes.

"It seems like you've delved deeply into one particular branch of Fūinjutsu."

My arms crossed defensively.

"Your notes are missing a very conspicuous seal."

I rolled my eyes.

"From this, I get the impression you knew you would become the Kyuubi Jinchuuriki for some time beforehand."

"I never gave any reason for you to think differently."

He laid the papers down.

"Is there a problem? I'm entitled to my own research."

"You were seven years old when this research began and it stopped shortly before you were first deployed. The references here in your notes are not to any library or any base of information in Konoha. In fact, I distinctly remember a visit I made to the Uzushiogakure library, about five years ago, and these references match up quite well. In fact, if I didn't know better, I would assume you learned from the Uzu library itself."

I didn't answer.

"Tell me, how did you obtain access to information?"

"I am fully capable of reading."

The Hokage took a deep breath. "Hatake-san, do you know how your student has such extensive knowledge in Fūinjutsu?"

"I only addressed the topic a handful of times when explaining the standard use of storage seals and again when teaching him to utilize explosive notes. All other knowledge he has obtained on his own, thus I cannot answer your question."

"Over the past two-and-a-half years, you've caused me more headaches than any other individual in this village, Kichiro-kun."

"My pleasure." Maybe that comment was a little uncalled for.

The Hokage held up one of the seals, the Shiki Fūjin. "How did you gain access to this seal?"

There was no compulsion to answer, so I remained silent.

"Did you share this with anyone?"

"Do you take me for an idiot?" I demanded. "Of course, I didn't, but your student gave a copy to my sister if you're worried about information leaks. I told her it was a forbidden seal so I doubt she shared it with anyone other than Minato."

"How do you know it's forbidden?"

"It's suicide to use, the fact is written all over the seal. If it wasn't forbidden, it should be."

"Almost all of these other seals can be used to seal a Bijū."

"I knew I'd end up becoming a Jinchuuriki, so I thought I'd get ahead and try and figure out what seal would be used beforehand. It didn't work if you're interested. Mito created an entire new seal array and I'm only partway through deciphering it."

"Why does the seal matter?"

"I'm an Uzumaki and I'm curious. Besides, I might as well figure it out before Minato and Kushina take an interest."

The Hokage nodded. "Are you capable of using these seals?"

"Yes," I gritted out. "But it will be against my will."

"From your earlier reaction, I assume you understood my proposal to the Raikage."

"Yes."

"I plan on sealing the Hachibi into one of the Kumo shinobi in exchange for an agreement of peace."

"Kumo is perfectly capable of sealing their own Bijū."

"Their seals don't last and end up forcing the Jinchuuriki to control the Hachibi alone."

"Yeah, how are you going to persuade the Raikage to let Konoha get their hands on the Hachibi and expect us to just give him back."

"Because you will be the only one to attend the sealing."

"Yeah, the Raikage is going to let a nine-year-old take that kind of responsibility."

"Well, right now, your sister is the only other person available with the Uzumaki chakra necessary to safely perform such a seal."

"Uzumaki chakra isn't required."

"I'd like to keep Kumo thinking it is."

"Why?"

"I suppose you would rather go out to one of the other war fronts and handle that yourself."

 ** _The Hachibi is in no state to help advocate for the freedom of the tailed beasts. Take your Hokage's offer and seal him on your terms and mine._**

"Kichiro-kun?"

 _I don't want to do this._

 ** _Then leave the Hachibi to be repeatedly sealed by a faulty seal, escape and attack the village, furthering the hatred focused at my siblings._**

 _It doesn't mean I want to sentence someone to becoming a Jinchuuriki. They probably won't even have a choice in the matter._

 ** _Then demand that you pick out the next Hachibi Jinchuuriki from the Raikage._**

 _He won't listen._

 ** _You don't understand the fear that accompanies any mention of myself and my siblings. He will concede._**

 _Fine. I still don't like this._

 ** _You are perfectly entitled to your opinion, but you will do it. I believe the Nibi is also held by Kumo, so I want you to take a trip and meet that Jinchuuriki._**

 _You're not the boss of me._

 ** _When it comes to my siblings, I am._**

I scowled. " _Fine_ ," I answered everyone. "But only on two conditions. First, I choose from a list of candidates in whom the Hachibi will be sealed. Second, I go to Kumo to perform the sealing and meet the host of the Nibi." _You've thought through freeing your siblings._

 ** _I have._**

 _Care to share?_

 ** _No._**

 _Sharing is caring._

 ** _Shut up, little rat._**

 _Two heads are better than one._

 ** _Not when one is your head._**

 _At least come up with something legitimate. I don't listen to ad hominem arguments._

He just ignored me.

 _I'm still curious._

"Uzumaki, are you listening?"

"Not to you. What do you want, _Hokage-sama_?"

"You're in communication with the Kyuubi."

"Yes, I am and you can't stop me."

Both the Hokage and Sakumo's jaws tightened, but they didn't comment.

Someone knocked loudly on the door.

"Enter," the Hokage called out. The council trudged in a moment later. "Thank you for arriving promptly. I will get straight to the point. In a few minutes, I will be going to the Raikage to propose an agreement. Konoha with securely seal the Hachibi for Kumo in exchange for a cease-fire."

"This is unwise," Danzō said immediately. "Konoha is still strong—"

"Konoha is strong enough now, but if we continue fighting this war on four fronts, we will lose. The Kiri and Suna conflicts can be resolved within the year, but the conflict with Iwa could extend for some time, our villages are too well-balanced."

"This agreement appears as if Konoha lost the war!"

"It is not the entirety of the agreement, councilman. Kumo also possesses the Nibi, whose host is not yet a shinobi. The agreement will be a tailed beast and a non-aggression treaty in exchange for the sealing of the Hachibi."

 ** _Interesting. I approve of this agreement._**

 _No one asked you._

"Will this individual be incorporated into the village forces?"

The female council member intervened before the Hokage could answer, "Shimura-san's point is valid. Through a stroke of luck, we have the Raikage in custody and the ability to make any demands we wish."

"Sure, we can demand that Kumo defer completely to Konoha," I argued, "But Kumo will not abide by unfair terms for any length of time and should we win any of the other wars, the moment Kumo breaks contract it will incite the other nations to do so as well and possibly ally themselves against us. We could not survive against a formal alliance of the other nations."

"I couldn't have said it better myself," the Hokage agreed with me.

"Do you always allow Genin to control your arguments, Sarutobi?"

I snorted. "Chuunin," I corrected. "I'm a Chuunin and I know I've mentioned this before."

The woman glared at me, furious.

"Hold your tongue, Uzumaki," the Hokage ordered. I made a show of zipping my lips closed and the Hokage whipped a kunai at me that just barely grazed my cheek. Sakumo slapped the back of my head. "Now, I have already begun discussing Uzumaki-kun's role in this matter with him and his analysis of my point of view is accurate. As of right now, Kumo is under the impression that an Uzumaki is essential to a successful, enduring seal and I wish to maintain that illusion. Thus, Uzumaki-san will be essential to this process. I will not tolerate disrespect on anyone's part, is that understood?"

I glared at the Hokage, but nodded anyways. I could be polite. Reluctantly, the council members agreed. Sakumo had melted into the background, his presence all but forgotten.

"Now, this is the agreement which will be presented to the Raikage, who is waiting in the basement. I do not wish to arrive with an entourage. My current choice of a companion is Uzumaki-kun. I know there is an objection to this. Besides his age, is there any legitimate objection to this? If so, what is a better alternative. Shimura-san, do you have anything to say?" I winced.

Danzō ignored the veiled jibe. "First, Uzumaki-san has no experience in politics. To place him in such a position would be unwise. Second, Uzumaki-san is nine. Even the most prodigious of individuals his age are no match for a Kage. Taking a boy like him would only weaken your position."

I opened my mouth to counter, but the Hokage cut me off with a look. I clamped my mouth shut.

"My final point is that if he can't keep himself under control in a situation with minor repercussions, how can you trust him in a meeting with one of the other Kage?"

I didn't move, but in my head, I acknowledged that Danzō did have a point. Then again, I knew I'd probably attack the Raikage once or twice if I was forced into the same room with him for an extended period. The Hokage would probably spend more time keeping heads from rolling than negotiating.

"I agree with Shimura-san," the two other council members chorused.

The Hokage looked at me. I shrugged. "Do you want me to defend myself or something?"

"Considering you were just accused of ineptitude and immaturity I expect you to be a bit more indignant."

"Well, you have no intention of changing your mind, so I don't see how arguing would change the outcome, aside from setting the minds of your council at rest, but the council isn't a group of people to be placated, but a group meant to advise." Take that for immature and incompetent.

The Hokage looked back at Danzō, who was not happy.

"He's still a boy! How do you intend to maintain your power with a child—"

I frowned, the argument didn't feel right.

"We have our differences, Shimura-san, but in this case, I believe a child would have a bigger impact on the Raikage than any Jōnin I could choose to accompany me. I'm sure you understand the importance of providing a united front. You discredit Uzumaki-kun's accomplishments. If I recall correctly, he was one of the reasons the war with Suna turned in our favor, as well as a significant part of the reason we are still holding the front with Iwa. We both know Kumo has a much more liberal point of view concerning Jinchuuriki. The Raikage has recognized Uzumaki-kun as the first perfect Jinchuuriki, whatever that means."

"It means someone who has partnered with the Bijū sealed inside of them and has potentially increased their strength by an exponential factor," I explained.

"If you're so strong, why haven't you been on the warfront?" Danzō demanded.

"I—"

"Enough! Shimura-san, you have proven yourself incapable of giving sound advice and remaining respectful to the other parties present."

"He's still your teammate, Sarutobi," one of the remaining council reproached. "Such action in present company is inappropriate."

"No, the actions of this council are inappropriate!" The Hokage stood up sharply.

I did not want to be here for this fallout, entertaining as it may become. I knew drama when I saw it. "I'll wait outside—" I moved to leave.

"Sit down, Uzumaki," he ordered. The seal on my forehead gave a painful twinge to make his point.

"I really should—"

" _Sit down_."

I sat and yanked the kunai out of the back of my seat then tossed it onto the Hokage's desk.

The Hokage motioned at the wall. I glanced in that direction and noticed someone push themself off the wall. I recognized them as an Uchiha, who looked slightly strange dressed in the standard Jōnin uniform instead of the uniform of the Military Police I was accustomed to. Instead of a hitai-ate, I noticed he had a strip of black cloth around his forehead before my attention was drawn back to Danzō.

"Uchiha Kagami?" Danzō exclaimed in disbelief. "He died over fifteen years ago, what game are you playing, Sarutobi?"

"This is no _game_ , Shimura-san! We are in the middle of a war! When Uzumaki-kun made that off-handed comment about your personal army, Shimura-san, I thought you were just covering holes in our defenses, quietly feeding intelligence, maybe covering a few missions my shinobi didn't have the time or energy to complete. Since he was declared dead, Uchiha Kagami has been working as a non-entity. I gave him the task of summarizing your activities alongside Hatake-san."

Danzō's jaw clenched.

"What was meant to be a task of a few hours turned into a three-day _investigation_ alongside an entire team, an investigation that has still not been completed." The Hokage picked up a large box from behind his desk and slammed it onto the desk. "These files provide the picture of an extremely detailed campaign against the Uchiha clan. One thing caught my attention. Orders, thankfully not yet filed, limiting the Uchiha to village guards and ordinary police!"

Wait, what? How were the Uchiha already being marginalized? How long was the coup in the making?

"You look a little confused, Kichiro-kun. Let me say this plainly, this council has acted behind my back and undermined my authority, not because of a mistrust of my leadership abilities, but because they have personal interests and grudges which did not align with the village as a whole."

Yeah, I should have ignored orders and just left, damn the consequences. I had no right to be in this room.

"The three of you may not be specifically beholden to the needs of the people of this village, but I am. The Uchiha clan helped found this village, and I'll be damned before this leadership is turned against its own people! Do you have any idea of the potential fallout of these policies, Shimura-san? The Uchiha are a powerful, and prideful, clan and if they turn on the village there will be little left for the other countries to sweep away."

"The Uchiha are cursed! Whether we give them reason or not, they will turn against us. It is in our best interests to make sure they don't have the strength necessary to tear apart this village from the inside!"

"No, it's in _your_ best interests, not the village."

"Your sensei—"

"I'm perfectly aware of the Nidaime's dislike of the Uchiha clan, he lived through a time when his clan waged an endless war against the Uchiha. That war is over and the enmity should have died with him."

"You're implying you _planned_ the death of the Nidaime—"

"How dare you! Tobirama-sensei taught me everything I know!" The Hokage roared and I barely had a chance to brace myself before the power of the two men swept through the room. My chair shuddered as Sakumo grabbed the back to steady himself. I couldn't even muster up any humor at the fact that Sakumo was the second-youngest in the room. Power-wise, every individual in the room could theoretically grind Sakumo and I into the ground twice over, even with the Kyuubi's assistance. By the time that thought finished processing, I was unconscious.


	16. Chapter 16

When I woke up, I lay on an old futon. Sakumo sat at my feet, holding his head. Uchiha Kagami crouched beside me.

"Feeling better?" Kagami asked.

"No," I responded. "What happened?"

"Do not feel bad, your sensei collapsed shortly after you. I think the rest of that argument is better left in the past. As soon as you recover, the Hokage wants to meet you."

"About the Raikage?"

"Yes."

"Can it wait until tomorrow?"

"No." Kagami helped me sit up. "I should introduce myself. Uchiha Kagami," he held out a hand. I took it, swaying slightly. "Shortly before you became a Genin, it became my job to prevent Kumo from obtaining an Uzumaki. I made the mistake of assuming Kumo would target you instead of your sister. It was a bad call on my part, I apologize."

"Well, why didn't you do anything once you knew?"

"I did. I placed a Genjutsu on her sensei to prompt him to help so you wouldn't need your memory scrubbed of my existence."

"Clever, did Jiraiya ever figure out the Genjutsu?"

"You would have met me much sooner if he did."

"Well, am I going to get my memory scrubbed of you now?"

Kagami laughed lightly. "Hell no, it's time I come back into the boring, old standard forces, my use in the shadows has expired. Besides, it's been too long since I last got to embarrass my best student." He ruffled Sakumo's hair.

"Only student," Sakumo corrected, sounding nearly as nauseous as when I screwed up the Genjutsu I was supposed to be testing on him.

"Now you're all grown up with your own cute little student who gives you almost as much trouble as you gave me."

"Please don't give him any ideas, sensei."

"Almost as much trouble? I feel like I, um, failed a test of some sort."

"You have to be a damn good genius to give someone as much trouble as Sakumo gave me. Anyways, you looking for a hot date, kid?" Kagami put his arm around my shoulder as if I was his best buddy.

"What?"

"He's _nine_ , Sensei. Is no one free of your insufferable romanticism?"

"You were six when I said you'd marry that girl. What was her name? Ah, I remember, Kaori. Now look who—"

Sakumo elbowed Kagami in the gut.

"Still, I'm always right! Most of the time."

"Leave my student alone."

Kagami fell back laughing insanely as the door opened to reveal the Hokage, his face sour.

"Good to know you're enjoying your newfound freedom, Kagami. Kichiro-kun, are you ready?"

"No," I muttered and inched away from the crazy Uchiha.

"He doesn't bite, Kichiro-kun," the Hokage commented with some amusement.

"Yeah, but someone dosed him with laughing gas and I don't want any."

"Lighten up, kid," Kagami patted me on the back, much rougher than strictly necessary. "The bastard Raikage isn't all that scary. Besides, he'll be all tied up with chakra-binding seals so you won't have to worry about a thing."

"I'm more concerned that I'm being haunted by some kind of ghost."

"I'm not a ghost!"

"History books say you died due to injuries from the same mission that brought about the Nidaime's death."

He snorted. "Looked me up, didn't you?"

"No, I just paid attention to history class."

"You've never taken a single damn history class, kid."

"Looked me up, didn't you?"

"Obviously! Can't have my cute little student picking up a random brat from a different world, he does things like that."

I jerked away, alarmed, but he just winked at me then turned away.

"Hey, Monkey Man, the bastard can stew for a while, let's go celebrate my 'newfound freedom'! My daughter will be there!"

"Kagami—"

"Everyone needs to lighten up here! Come on! Let intel do their deal and this war can be as good as won. Come on! I got who knew to meet us at my place with booze and—"

"Your daughter is nine," Sakumo pointed out.

"Your point? She'll have Kichiro-kun to hang out with and a nice, private training ground to mess around in. Someone needs to make sure we all get home tonight, might as well be the kids."

"I have to—" I tried to get out of this impromptu meeting.

"Your cute little siblings are going to be unconscious for the next twenty-four hours and the rest of your family fell asleep about a half-hour ago and gave your bed to the squirt. You're not going to be able to sleep for a while and my little girl could use a boyfriend."

"How—"

"Shadow clones." Kagami hauled me over his shoulder. "I miss when I could do this to Sakumo—"

"Let me go!" I demanded. If I wanted to, I probably could have fought my way out of his grip, but attacking a Jōnin, who I was certain happened to be quite close to Kage level considering how he seemed to mess with Sakumo with impunity, never ended well without a very surefire way of escape, which I certainly did not have. "I'm no one's boyfriend!"

"Sorry, kid, if little Yasu likes you, I'm not letting you break her heart."

"What the hell, man, let me go!"

"Nope."

I kicked and writhed, I even tried to replace myself with everything in the room, but Kagami seemed to know all my tricks. His shoulder pressed painfully into the bruise on my side but I was too proud to show the pain.

"Seal-less substitution is a nice touch. Sakumo didn't get the hang of that until he was thirteen."

The Hokage chuckled. "Perhaps I do need a few hours to enjoy myself."

"Don't compare me to Sakumo!" I protested at the same time as Kagami led the march out of the room.

"That's what us old guys are here for; to embarrass the younger generation."

"I thought the older generation was just there to get beaten up by the younger," I scowled.

"Give it a few more decades and you might stand more than five seconds against me, kid."

I snarled in annoyance and struggled the entire way through the village. We stopped in front of an old, abandoned building in the section of the village most densely populated by Uchiha. Kagami dropped me on the ground, seeming merely amused by my threats of revenge and inventive curses.

"Kai!" Kagami shouted with far too much enthusiasm. The abandoned, run-down building suddenly appeared to refurbish itself within seconds. "Yasu!" He hollered. "To-chan's secret mission is over!"

A girl cheered loudly from inside the house and raced out the door a moment later. He swung her up off the ground and onto his back as she giggled. "Does that mean I can introduce you to my team?"

"Sure! I'll take you to training tomorrow, how does that sound?"

She cheered as a woman stepped out of the house.

"Ka-chan! Guess what? To-chan's secret mission is over!"

"I heard," she said patiently as Kagami greeted her with a kiss, quickly ushering everyone inside. "Nice of you to finally bring your student around, Sakumo-kun." The woman smiled widely. I had tried to hang back in hopes they forgot about me, but no luck. She held out a hand to me. "I'm Uchiha Rei, it's nice to meet you, Kichiro-kun."

I didn't have anything against Kagami or his family, but I felt like I was being dragged to someone else's family reunion.

"Kagami and Hiruzen are changing in there. Dinner is about to be put on the table, so hurry up."

Sakumo pulled me into the room. The Hokage had hung his official robes on a hook beside the door and was pulling off the armor beneath it. The hat had been left in the Hokage tower.

"Hang up your haori beside the Hokage's things and toss your hitai-ate and vest somewhere with your senbon pouch," Sakumo instructed.

"Why?" I asked.

Sakumo smiled but Kagami answered. "There's no ranks in my house so you're just a kid here, Kichiro-kun."

I was all for not being a shinobi. Sakumo and the Hokage left before I managed to take off my vest. The soreness from fighting Sakumo earlier that day as well as the minor injuries during the invasion afterwards, coupled with the extended use of the Kyuubi's chakra over the past few days left me extremely sore. Kagami finished wrapping his knuckles with strips of black cloth but hesitated before taking a knee in front of me and deftly helped me take off the stiff vest without raising my arms and stretching the already-torn skin from being tossed around.

"You should have said something, kid, and I wouldn't have thrown you around like that."

I shrugged. "I never got a moment to heal it."

"Heal it now."

I hesitated, then lifted my shirt to look at the bruises. Kagami didn't react when he saw the impressive array of red and purple marks around my torso.

"To-chan?" Yasu asked from the doorway. "Ka-chan says dinner's waiting."

"We'll be there in a minute."

"Okay."

A minute later, I had finished healing. Kagami wrapped the palms of my hands with a few strips of white cloth and did the same thing in place of my hitai-ate. He put a hand on my shoulder. "Hopefully you're never in the same position as me, just not existing in the world for over a decade, but I want to tell you that the few people who knew I was alive, that I existed, became very precious to me. Sakumo is one of those people. You probably haven't noticed since he's extremely good at hiding it, but he's prone to just becoming very depressed, often for no reason. I guess I just want you to know you've done a lot more for him over the past two-and-a-half years than he's ever done for you. You probably don't understand—"

"I understand."

"Then thank you. Come on, let's go eat!"

"Hey!" I protested as he tossed me back over his shoulder and carried me out.

"Who's ready to be fed by the best damn cook in the shinobi nations?" He announced as I kicked him in the stomach. It had no effect.

When he set me down, nicely this time, when I turned around, I found Yasu flying at me. I yelped and ducked just in time to get out of the way. The adults laughed as she flung herself at me a second time.

"What the hell? Leave me alone!" I dodged a second time and slid underneath the low table and out the other side. She jumped over the table at me, but the girl's mother caught her around the waist and sat her down. Everyone else took a seat. I weighed my options and decided I wanted to avoid the three Uchiha more than I wanted to express my dislike of the Hokage and sat down with Sakumo on my right and the Hokage at the end of the table on my left.

The meal was simple, traditional, and the awkwardness quickly dissolved. There were a few other people there: Sakumo's wife, the Hokage's wife and team, and the Uchiha clan head and his family.

It was halfway through the meal before I recognized the scowling teenager sitting stiffly across from me. I jerked sharply.

"You alright?" Sakumo asked quietly.

The Hokage watched out of the corner of his eye as he continued the conversation.

"I'm fine," I responded. "I'll be right back." I stood up and went outside.

After a minute, I heard someone follow me out as I sat down on the back porch steps. Tsunade sat down beside me.

"You look awful," she commented bluntly. "What happened in there?"

"Nothing."

"Liar."

"Fine, I just thought of something and I didn't want everyone looking at me."

"What did you think of?"

"Right now, I'm thinking of you leaving."

"People are worried about you."

"This doesn't have anything to do with anything."

"Then—"

"Go away." I stared out over the backyard-turned-training-ground, barely able to make out the shapes of the trees just beyond the fence.

"I know it's hard while your sister—"

"It has absolutely nothing to do with what happened today, I promise. I have no intention of going down any dangerous thought trails so just relax and go back to the party, I just need a few minutes to figure something out." Still suspicious, Tsunade left.

I wasn't particularly surprised at Fugaku's appearance, more at how obviously interconnected the strongest people of the shinobi world were. As an obvious orphan, in canon, Minato would have had no connection. From what I could gather, at his inauguration, Minato was the shinobi nations' Carnegie. There was probably a better analogy, but the history I remembered was beginning to fade and I didn't have Google to refresh it. Naruto's fascination with the Yondaime suddenly made a lot more sense, considering the three other Hokages all had their own mighty accomplishments and were consistently overshadowed by the Yondaime, even though his reign barely lasted a year. There was a much bigger picture forming in my head, but that was the gist of it.

"Kichiro-kun!" Kagami called out. "You might want to get in here before Sakumo shreds your reputation!"

I rolled my eyes and obliged.

"He lives!" Kagami cried as I entered. He had obviously started on the drink, as had most of the other adults, while Fugaku was making a valiant attempt to sneak his taste. Unfortunately, even though they were impaired, he was in a room with several of the strongest shinobi in the village and Kagami slapped his hand away without even looking. "What's on your mind that has you running out of the room, kiddo?"

"Do you have a copy of 'The History of the Shinobi Nations' I can borrow for a few minutes? Preferably not the civilian version."

"Sure, but you have _The Professor_ sitting not three feet in front of you, why not ask him? We're all dying for a piece of your mind. That came out wrong. We all want to hear what has your knickers in a twist. Still wrong. We all want to know what you're thinking, yeah, that sounds right."

"Yeah, but he's biased, do you have the book or not?"

"Kid, every self-respecting ninja has at least two copies of that thing." Kagami pointed at an inconspicuous shelf in the corner of the room. "Top shelf, left side. You need someone to get it down for you, shorty?"

"Nah, I'm good."

I jumped up and attached a hand to the ceiling then stuck my feet to the ceiling and walked over to the bookshelf and pulled out the book then flipped to land in a crouch.

"Bring it over here, kid, we're all dying from curiosity."

I barely kept an amused smile off my face and obliged while pulling a pencil and booklet I painstakingly bound for my own convenience out of my pocket. The first half of the booklet was covered with a menagerie of notes and odd sketches of people to avoid even if they weren't in the Bingo Book. The notes were all written in English, making the entire booklet impossible to decipher. Before I could open it, Kagami snatched it out of my hand.

"I've been wanting to get a closer look at this for almost a year!"

"Give it back!" I protested.

"This isn't any code I've seen," Kagami commented, trying to decipher the script. I had to hold back a laugh when I saw him holding it upside-down and backwards.

"So? Give it back! It's mine!"

"Alright." He closed it and held it out to me. Before I could snatch it back, he tossed it to Yasu. The girl giggled and tossed it to Jiraiya.

"Real mature." I rolled my eyes as the booklet went around the table and each person tried to decipher it without luck. While I was distracted, Kagami snatched the textbook out of my hand. "Is it Torment Kichiro Day or something?" I demanded.

The booklet landed beside the Hokage's hand and the room waited with bated breath as he opened it. I took the opportunity the snatch the textbook back from Kagami and marched up to the Hokage and held out my hand expectantly. Almost right away, the Hokage figured out the way my notes were supposed to be read, even though his eyes skimmed it from right to left. Yeah, he wouldn't be able to decipher it like that, not that I expected him to be successful. He would have to be able to understand a different alphabet as well as an entirely different language, which was incredibly unlikely, if not impossible.

"I'm not sure I could figure this one out," the Hokage said, returning the booklet.

I smirked. "No, you can't."

"Do you have a name for it?"

I shrugged. "English."

The group rolled the foreign word around in their heads as I sat down and opened the history book, refocusing on my original task: figuring out just how deeply nepotism and cronyism ran in this world.

It didn't take long for the conversation to turn away from my eccentricities, but I noticed the Hokage, Kagami, and Sakumo watching me out of the corners of their eyes.

I methodically flipped through the textbook, counting and noting down important points.

"Your conclusion?" The Hokage took a knee beside me as I finished up. Startled, I threw my elbow back at his gut, enhanced with chakra. He caught my arm easily. Because he needed a slap upside the head, I followed through with a punch to the face. He caught it and raised an eyebrow at me. The seal on my forehead started to burn and I pulled away, rubbing it, while he shook out his hands. "Tsunade! I thought you said you never taught anyone your chakra punch!"

"I didn't!" She answered from across the room where she was bickering with her teammates.

"She didn't," Sakumo said. "He hit me with one of those punches within five minutes of meeting me, he never even laid eyes on Tsunade-hime."

"Impressive," the Hokage laid a grandfatherly hand on my shoulder. "So, what's all this secrecy about your notes and thoughts about?"

I scowled and stuffed the booklet in my pocket. Before I had a chance to answer, Fugaku marched up in front of me. "Fight me," he demanded.

"I beg your pardon?"

"You're not as good as everyone seems to think."

"I don't want to fight."

"Come on, kid, where's your pride? You can't let a challenge like that go!" Kagami said and put an arm around Fugaku's shoulders. The teenager shrugged him off. "Besides, the clan scions challenge each other all the time!"

"I'm not a scion," I snapped back and stood up to put the textbook away.

"Close enough, little cousin," Tsunade shoved my gear into my chest while taking the book away. "I want to see how you stack up against the Uchiha Golden Boy."

"I don't—"

"Fight! Fight!" Yasu chanted excitedly.

"Come on, kid, don't disappoint the lady!" Kagami insisted.

"Yeah, um, I don't bow to the whims of every bloodthirsty child I meet, thank you very much." I shoved my gear back at Tsunade. "I've already fought twice today—"

"That was hours ago, and it was a fight and a heated conversation."

I was already being hustled out to the backyard, my protests ignored.

"Alright, anything below B-rank is fine, obviously, no killing." Kagami led us out. It was dark and the moon provided barely enough light for me to see by, though that would change if Fugaku started launching fireballs at me.

Sakumo pulled me aside. "Fugaku-kun has a bit of an ego, so please actually put some effort into this."

 ** _You will not shame yourself and me in a pathetic match like this._**

 _Shut up._

 ** _He has the Sharingan._**

 _I know._

 ** _It's not strong enough to control me._**

 _I know._

 ** _Beat that brat to a pulp._**

 _You're far too invested in this._

I made sure to fumble as I attached my pouch of senbon to my leg. Fugaku snorted and activated his Sharingan. I shrugged on my bloodstained Chuunin vest and fumbled the zipper. Just because I could, I drew on a small amount of the Kyuubi's chakra to help me sense so I didn't have to rely entirely on my eyes, which could be easily blinded. It would also help me fight off Genjutsu.

Fugaku swallowed as he felt the Kyuubi's chakra appear.

I didn't know very many water jutsu if need be, but I knew enough. Fugaku was a Chuunin like me, so I wasn't particularly worried about being outmatched.

He started with a Genjutsu, which I ruined before he could complete. I launched a handful of senbon at him. He just rolled his eyes and knocked them away with several shuriken.

"You're going to have to do better than that."

"Make me."

Fugaku busted out the Ninjutsu and I spent the next part of the fight dodging various fireballs and spikes of earth. Thankfully, Fugaku's repertoire was limited by his age. In less than a minute, the barrage faded. I landed, my hair slightly singed from a close shave. During the onslaught, I attached several senbon and a kunai to each foot to throw if I got the chance. It was one of my favorite tricks; no one ever thought to watch for projectiles from the feet, simply because feet had no opposable thumbs, which was easily remedied by chakra.

I dug my toes into the ground, preparing for his Taijutsu onslaught. He charged. I had wondered where Sakumo had learned the Uchiha Taijutsu style to teach me, but with Kagami as his sensei, it made more sense. Fugaku's attacks were easy to counter, but the strength behind them forced me to use chakra when I couldn't dodge.

"Hold still, you little brat!" Fugaku snarled as I managed to dodge his sudden change in style.

"Um, I like my face how it is, so you have to promise not to mess it up!"

"What does that—" Fugaku recoiled as I switched my style. Until then, I had left my feet planted and defended with my arms. I switched to one of the styles Sakumo had focused the most on, which had me flying through the air and attacking with every part of my body, starting with a sweep to the legs.

I was at a significant disadvantage in size, but with chakra, I could match strength without much problem. In speed, he was slightly faster, but I was smaller and had better control over my body, so his Sharingan didn't give him enough of an advantage.

Fugaku swore as my second stick, from his perspective, appeared out of nowhere, unable to be dodged. He couldn't counter what his eyes couldn't see. While he struggled to avoid the stick, he looked away just long enough for me to launch a senbon from the bottom of each of my feet. One lodged itself in the carpals of his dominant hand and the other missed. I kicked the successful senbon for good measure and he screamed in pain. When I kicked the senbon, he managed a solid kick to my ribs followed by a punch to my solar plexus. We both broke apart.

Most pain, I could numb and continue to function while the Kyuubi healed me. The problem with getting punched in the solar plexus was that it wasn't pain, per say, but when hit with a shinobi-strength punch, my entire body temporarily shut down.

I managed remained standing, hoping the pain from the senbon would occupy Fugaku long enough for me to recover enough to move. I could heal the damage to my organs while fighting.

I glanced at the adults. Tsunade looked worried, rightly so, she was probably the only one who fully understood the damage I just took. She took a step forward to stop the match, but I shook my head sharply and forced myself to stand straight, my hand over my stomach, healing. The rest of the adults were splitting their attention between a conversation and watching the match from the porch. Yasu sat on the steps, fascinated.

It was my turn to bring out Ninjutsu, but without hand seals. Fugaku pulled out the senbon and turned to glare at me, holding his hand. He wouldn't be able to use hand seals and I doubted he knew seal-less jutsu like I relied on. Seal-less jutsu took a long time to learn so most shinobi tended to forgo the speed boost in exchange for learning a larger number of jutsu.

Fugaku ran forward and I blasted him back with a battering ram of wind. I couldn't quite move yet, so Fugaku came at me from my right side. A much deadlier blade of wind forced him to leap out of the way and land on his injured hand with an angry shout of pain. He tried to attack me from behind, but I closed my eyes and blasted him with a jet of water that expelled more chakra than I intended. He continued to run around me, but by that point, I could move freely. He jumped towards me and my hands hit the ground at the same time at his feet. The ground sucked him into the earth up to his waist, a modification of the headhunter jutsu. I leapt over his readjusted strike and grabbed his wrist in the process and twisted his arm behind him until the blade of his kunai touched the base of his skull, just like Kakashi did to Naruto during the bell test.

The small audience went silent.

"I yield," Fugaku growled.

I released him and lifted him out of the ground, then kicked his ankle petulantly.

"What was that for?" He demanded, hopping backwards on one foot.

"That hurt, and it's going to take me forever to heal, you bastard! It was a _spar_! You're supposed to pull your punches!"

He stuck his injured hand in my face. "I didn't see you holding anything back!"

I reached down with my free hand and pulled a senbon and a kunai from where they were attached to the bottom of my feet. "I would have destroyed the carpals in your hand via kunai instead if messing with your pain receptors via a puny senbon."

"Where the hell did that senbon come from anyways?"

"The store."

Kagami stepped between us with a light before Fugaku could retaliate for my smart-ass comment. "Good fight. Kichiro, are you determined to rack up the blood pressure of everyone assembled?"

"Yes," I grunted and fell to one knee.

"Fine, just so we're clear. Let's get you both to Tsunade."

"I can fix myself," I retorted.

"I'm fine," Fugaku snapped, glaring at me.

"Idiot, you won't ever be able to use your hand without pain again if you don't have a medic look at it sometime in the near future and I'm otherwise occupied." That was a blatant lie, his hand would only ache for a few days whether he received treatment or not.

Fugaku snorted.

I ignored him.

"Kichiro-kun, if you can, please stop using the Kyuubi's chakra, the change in your appearance is quite disconcerting." Kagami said once Fugaku walked away.

Kagami drew a katana so I could see my reflection. I frowned, studying the small transformations. I hadn't been able to get a good look at them before. It was much more controlled than I ever remembered Naruto's early transformations being, but then again, I had the Kyuubi's cooperation. I was barely channeling any of the Kyuubi's chakra, just enough to augment my senses and help with the healing process, but it made my eyes resemble a fox's, even in the way they reflected the light, and sharpened my teeth. My nails were sharper, sturdier, and curved, like a fox's. I was reasonably sure I could fix the severe bruising of my organs without the Kyuubi's help so I slowly released the chakra and watched my eyes fade back to their normal green.

"Thank you," Kagami let out a relieved sigh. I looked up at him and noticed his Sharingan fade.

"Why does everyone think I'm about to lose control? I've already told you the Kyuubi agreed to work with me."

 ** _They fear my name, as they should._**

"Yes, but the Kyuubi isn't known for its benevolence."

"Yeah, well Kushina isn't known for her patience, but she can still sit down and study when it suits her purposes."

"Fair, but do you trust her leave her birthday present on the table and untampered with for a week?"

I grumbled an unintelligible response. Without warning, Kagami lifted me into his arms and carried me into the house. After a minute, he propped me against one of the walls with a blanket over me. Once settled, I closed my eyes to concentrate on the healing.

Healing myself was tedious and considering the adults had their party in full swing, I decided it wasn't worth moving. If I had pegged Kagami right, I would probably wake up to a prank, but I didn't care.

(-_-)

When I did wake up, it was nearly morning and someone had put a pillow under my head. The house was quiet, which felt strange. A few feet away, Jiraiya had fallen asleep on a futon and Tsunade was collapsed beside him. In an adjacent room, low voices were conversing. I took off my vest, disgusted by the smell of blood.

Silently, I stood up and crept towards the voices. When I reached the door, I paused, listening. Without a break in the conversation, the door opened. I flinched out of the way as the sudden light blinded me.

The Hokage motioned me inside.

"So, what do you think?" Kagami asked me.

"About what?"

"This." He pointed at the table where papers were piled with one on top at which he was pointing. It was one of mine.

"It's my seal."

"Yes, but do you think it can seal the Hachibi?"

"No."

"Why?"

"Because it would barely seal a single tail's worth of the Kyuubi's chakra."

"What?" Kagami squawked. "How much chakra are we talking about here?"

"How am I supposed to quantify chakra?"

"Good point. In comparison to the average shinobi, how much chakra are we talking about?"

 ** _It would take approximately sixteen individuals, probably more, with the chakra capacity of the Uchiha in front of you to equal the amount of chakra the Hachibi possesses._**

"The Kyuubi says it would take about sixteen times the amount of chakra you have to rival the Hachibi."

"Are you sure you can trust that?"

"Go ask the Raikage to confirm it, he's fought the Hachibi, right?"

Kagami swore and punched the table.

"The Shiki Fūjin would seal it up without a problem."

"I can count on my fingers the number of people capable of using that seal and the village can't afford to lose any of them," the Hokage rebuked. "You said you were capable of sealing the Hachibi. Of the seals in your notes, this one was the most likely to succeed. If not this seal, then which one?"

" _Seal two-zero-seven_."

"Yeah, what does that mean?"

My organization system was in English, so I wasn't surprised they had no idea what I was taking about.

"It's a numbering system," the Hokage concluded.

I scowled. "Yes. What you're looking at there is a modification of the seal Tsunade uses to store chakra in her forehead. It wouldn't be able to hold the Ichibi."

"Where's the one you're talking about?"

I shuffled the papers until I found the proper seal. The organization was certainly not how I left it, but it didn't take me long to find. "This one." I slapped it down on top.

The Hokage leaned over it, studying the seal. I noticed Sakumo sitting on the kitchen counter a few feet away. His knowledge of seals was extremely limited; thus, he didn't participate much in the discussion.

"What do you think?" Kagami asked the Hokage. Apparently, he didn't read seals very well either. For that matter, I was extremely slow at reading and writing seals as well, but I could probably read all but the most complex of seals. Kushina read seals better than she read kanji. Minato read kanji better than both of us, though my comprehension was much better than either of theirs on both counts.

The Hokage pointed at a section of the seal which used one of the secret Uzumaki aspects of sealing. I leaned over it, trying to remember what I intended with that particular section of the matrix.

 ** _Very clever, little rat._**

 _Would you stop calling me a rat, please?_

 ** _When you stop looking like hairless vermin._**

 _You need lessons in politeness._ "It's just a stability factor," I concluded, ignoring the Kyuubi's mocking. "The dead space in that section of the seal as well as the dead space in several other sections made the seal unbalanced and if I tried to apply it, it would have unraveled, which would have been bad, obviously."

"You shouldn't have this 'dead space' in seals."

I shrugged. "It works."

"It's dangerous."

"Actually, if you're prone to overloading seals, it makes it safer."

"How did you learn sealing so quickly? It took me nearly a decade to get to the point where I could make my own seals."

"Yeah, well, I wasn't splitting my attention between a hundred projects, it was just this and medic training. Kushina taught me after I managed to memorize the first dozen or so base matrices."

"Even the Uzumaki take more than two years to learn sealing at this level. According to Kushina, it took her nearly four years to get to this point."

I spoke three languages and was literate in two, plus I could read music, albeit slowly. Picking up what equated to a fourth language wasn't difficult. I just shrugged in answer. "I like puzzles. Creating seals is like making my own puzzles, making my own story. It's interesting. It took me a couple hundred tries to reach that point there, but I figured it out in the end. Why does any of this matter?"

"You failed to put an understanding of Fūinjutsu in your personnel file."

"It took me nearly a year of specified study to make that seal, I wouldn't call that an understanding of anything. Stop looking at me like that."

"You're still willing to seal the Hachibi with this?"

"No, but I don't have a choice. The Kyuubi made sealing the Hachibi one of the conditions for continued cooperation."

"You said one of your goals was freeing the Bijū."

I rolled my eyes. "That's going to be quite the process, of which the Kyuubi is mostly going to be in charge, and until everyone can agree to play nicely, they're going to stay in time-out. Unless you want me to head to all the villages and start releasing Bijū. Then I wholeheartedly agree and lets just go smash the other villages with their own supposed weapons, when do I leave?"

"We are sticking with the original plan to bring Kumo to heel and give a warning to the other nations. As soon as we stick the agreement on the Raikage, I want you to update your file. You would never have gone to the front lines if I knew both you and your sister were budding Fūinjutsu prodigies."

"Might as well lump Minato into that category as well."

"At least he was honest about his abilities. You still haven't told anyone who you learned from or from what books you're learning from."

"No, I haven't. I don't intend to. You can't make me. End of story." I was a frustrating little bastard and I liked it.

"I never thought I'd say this, but you could learn a thing or two from him about stubbornness, Hiruzen." Kagami chuckled.

"That's enough."

"Someone's getting touchy, fine."

I rolled my eyes and turned to leave, uninterested.

"Where are you going?" The Hokage grabbed a fistful of the back of my shirt.

"To go see what I can do for Minato and Kushina."

"Tsunade has already seen to them and they're being kept sedated until we can figure out how to help them mentally when they wake up."

"I can—"

"You have a responsibility to this village first."

"They're—"

"They can wait. If need be, I will order you to comply."

I felt anger rising in my chest, cutting off my voice. I jerked myself free. "Then give the damn order, don't _threaten_ it."

I continued walking away. I wasn't sure if the Hokage was bluffing or not, but I was going to call him on it anyways and let him fight with his own morality. I opened the door.

"Uzumaki Kichiro, I order you to remain with me until you have fulfilled your immediate obligation to this village by assisting in facilitating the peace negotiations with Kumogakure."

The order settled on my shoulders with the weight of a block of concrete. For a long minute, I seriously considered trying defy the order. I compromised by turning around and grabbing the seal then leaving anyways. They'd figure out where I was going soon enough.


	17. Chapter 17

I waited outside the Hokage tower for about five minutes, glaring at the ground. When the Hokage strode up, he grabbed my arm and hauled me into the building.

"Basement," he snapped. "Twenty minutes."

Without another word, he left me in front of a restroom and shoved a bundle of clean clothing into my arms.

I got the hint and cleaned myself up, mostly by scrubbing away the blood crusted under my fingernails and washing my face and rinsing my hair. After a second of contemplation, I sealed my dirty clothes into a scrap of paper I found in my pocket. The trek down to where the Kyuubi was sealed inside of me didn't seem nearly as long as it did the first time. My ears popped four times on the way down.

The Hokage waited for me at the bottom of the steps, smoking his pipe.

"Do not speak unless spoken too," he murmured, then led the way forward. I sulked after him.

One of the ANBU opened the door for us. I hesitated for the briefest of seconds, the ANBU's mask was blank except for the village symbol plastered across it. After a moment of concentration, I recognized Kagami's chakra signature. He winked at me. _Good luck,_ he signed. I managed to pass the recognition off as an acknowledgement and entered the room. It didn't seem as big as I remembered it. The seals on the walls of the room glowed, clearly active.

Once he determined exactly who was visiting, the Raikage stood up laboriously, with no visible restraints. His head was held high and his gaze full of challenge. The door closed behind us. I leaned against the wall beside it while the Hokage strolled forward, still pulling on his pipe, to stand a few feet in front of the Raikage, who was more than a foot taller and twice as broad.

"A," the Hokage greeted amicably.

"Sarutobi," the Raikage responded cautiously.

"It's been a long time."

"Not long enough. Release my men."

"That depends on the agreement we reach."

"You have me. Release them."

"You really do care about nothing but your men, here I thought it was an exaggeration."

"Don't toy with me, you coward."

"Your men are as well as can be expected. Our methods of extracting information are not so crude that you need worry about them returning permanently injured."

"Kumo had _nothing_ to do with the torture of those two Genin. I'd gladly slaughter your village's future but I would never pointlessly torture them!"

The Hokage held up a placating hand. "I am perfectly aware."

"What do you want?"

A thin scroll appeared in the Hokage's hand. "Not much."

The Raikage took it and slowly unrolled it. "The Nibi and its Jinchuuriki, all Kumo resources directed against Kiri, and a non-aggression pact in exchange for the secure sealing of the Hachibi."

"And the safe return of all prisoners on both sides." The Hokage smirked.

"I won't fight your battles for you."

"You don't have a choice."

"I won't give up one of my people and a future shinobi to you, nor will I hand over the Nibi.

"Again, you have no choice."

The Raikage glared. "Then you can keep me here and let me rot. I will not hand over—"

The Hokage raised a hand. The door beside me opened and Kagami, still dressed as the ANBU, shuffled in a Kumo prisoner. I kept my face carefully neutral.

The Raikage lunged forward but a barrier stopped him dead in less than a step.

"Your men mean absolutely nothing to me. They are currently enemies who deserve no mercy. I don't believe you can watch your men tortured to death in front of you."

Kagami slowly took off his mask. "Nice to see you again, Raikage-sama. Our last meeting didn't end on the best of terms and I apologize for not breaking under your torture or having the decency to die when ordered. No hard feelings?"

"Bastard," the Raikage snarled and my curiosity made me stand a bit straighter. "You Konoha nin are harder to kill than cockroaches."

The Hokage chuckled. "I'll let you think my offer over with your head Jōnin."

Kagami crouched and placed a seal at the Kumo Jōnin's feet and backed away, leaving the man's hands tied.

"Uzumaki-kun will remain here. He is capable of answering any questions you may have pertaining to the Bijū. These are the best terms you will be offered."

"He's nothing more than a child playing dress-up!"

"I wasn't aware you were a guest here!" Kagami responded sarcastically. The Raikage punched the barrier in a burst of anger. The Hokage and Kagami left, leaving me leaning against the wall.

"Don't even consider it," the Jōnin growled.

"He's not bluffing."

"We swore—"

"My decision's final."

"The council—"

"I'll deal with the council."

"You'll—"

"Enough. Uzumaki, how does Konoha propose to seal the Hachibi?"

"I will accompany you to a specified site and choose from a list of candidates in which to seal the Hachibi, perform the sealing, and return with the Nibi."

"How do we know you'll keep your word?"

"I don't have a choice." I lifted my forehead protector so he could see the seal. "It's called the Shitagau. I am incapable of disobeying a direct order from the Hokage. If you hear the order, you know it will be obeyed."

"When will the sealing occur?"

"Whenever the Hokage releases me from the village."

"What seal will be used?"

"One of my own."

"You're a kid."

I scowled. "Welcome to Konoha where only yours truly gives a damn about age. Besides, its wartime, our normal rules about age have been all but thrown out the window. Do you have any more questions or can I go? I have better things to do."

"Tell Sarutobi I agree to his demands."

"Is that all?"

"I would appreciate something to eat."

I nodded and left.

(-_-)

After delivering the message to the Hokage in the form of a note passed through one of the shinobi entering the building to report directly to the Hokage, I went to the hospital. Since I was in uniform, as a medic I had free range in the building. It took me two minutes to locate Minato in the pediatric ward, and another thirty seconds to find Kushina in the shinobi recovery ward.

It took me the rest of the day to reach them. Something bad happened and the shinobi section was overflowing with new arrivals. After helping with three emergency surgeries, I found myself unable to walk past the injured. I probably skewed the system slightly, overworked doctors appearing, only to find their patients had already been patched up and were waiting to be discharged. It was a harmless and somewhat productive prank I enjoyed playing, especially since the civilian doctors hadn't caught me yet and none of the medics had squealed.

There was one doctor who hated paperwork more than anything. On my days off when I couldn't find anything better to do, I would commission the help of the career Genin receptionist (they were actually one of the hospital's only visible guards) and target that particular doctor by healing all of her patients before she could get to them and making her do nothing but discharge patients and paperwork for most of the day. The ensuing shouting and cursing at thin air was hilarious.

When I finally made it to Kushina, she was just waking up. One of the nurses had propped her up with pillows. She just stared listlessly at the small hospital meal in front of her.

"Kushina?" I asked cautiously as I sat down on the bed beside her.

She didn't respond, but her hand went to her abdomen where I stabbed her to get to the kunoichi holding her hostage.

"Kushina-chan?" I tried again, taking her hand in mine.

"Minato's dead, isn't he?"

"No!" I exclaimed. "He's going to be fine!"

"Then why'd they take him?" She wailed. Her head fell into her hands and she started sobbing. "He was right beside me, I promised I wouldn't let go, and then he was gone!"

I quickly put my arms around her. "He's fine, Kushina-chan. I know exactly where he is, okay?" I ran my fingers through her hair, a motion that always seemed to calm her down when she was upset.

Suddenly, she shrieked and jerked away from me. The attending nurses came running and one pulled me away while two of them held her down. This only seemed to set her off more than anything and the tray flew off the bed.

Escaping the grip of a nurse experienced with restraining shinobi was a bit harder than I expected, especially while shouting for them to let her go before someone got hurt. I had to resort to a Jōnin-level maneuver I saw Sakumo perform when he found himself in a tight spot on the Iwa border. He would probably beat me senseless if he knew I attempted it, but I only cared about getting Kushina to snap out of whatever flashback she was trapped in.

When I landed on the foot of the bed and brandished my sticks, the nurses quickly jerked out of the way. As soon as they released her, she stopped screaming and scrambled backwards staring straight ahead, her eyes flashing to every movement, but not quite seeing anything.

" _Dancing bears, painted wings, things I almost remember, and a song someone sings, once upon a December_ ," I found myself singing softly. It was in English, the first thing that came into my head. One of my army buddies had a kid with some kind of disorder that had the poor child curled in a corner whenever certain stimulus appeared. Either he or his wife would always crouch beside the girl and sing the song to calm her down. " _Someone holds me safe and warm, horses prance through a silver storm_."

Kushina stilled. I moved slowly as I sat down and crossed my legs.

" _Figures dancing gracefully, across my memory_."

Her eyes finally focused on me.

" _Someone holds me safe and warm, horses prance through a silver storm. Figures dancing gracefully, across my memory_." I couldn't remember any of the rest, so I just repeated the song from beginning. " _Dancing bears, painted wings, things I almost remember—_ "

Kushina lunged forward and I resisted the urge to flinch out of the way as she wrapped her arms around my neck and curled against my chest, seeming much smaller than she actually was.

"— _And a song someone sings, once upon a December. Someone holds me safe and warm, horses prance through a silver storm. Figures dancing gracefully, across my memory_."

Gingerly, I wrapped my arms around her and held as still as I possibly could.

" _Someone holds me safe and warm, horses prance through a silver storm. Figures dancing gracefully, across my memory_."

"Nii-san, I still see them—" her breath caught and after a moment she was sobbing into my neck. "They're dead, but they're still there!"

"I know."

"Please make then go away, Nii-san!"

My arms tightened around her, but I knew better than to make a promise I could never keep without turning her life into a lonely hell. "I love you, Kushina-chan. You can always tell me anything."

"I don't want to hurt you too!"

"Kushina, there's nothing you can say or do that could hurt me, okay? I'm your big brother and the only thing that hurts me is when you get hurt."

"I want this war to be over! I don't want to be scared anymore! Where's Minato? Is he okay?"

"He's sleeping," Jiraiya's voice answered as I opened my mouth. "There were complications with the treatment, so he needs to be actively supervised as a precaution. He'll be perfectly fine in time."

"I want to see for myself."

Jiraiya stepped into our line of sight and looked at me for an answer. I held up a hand so Kushina could see it glowing with medical ninjutsu. She nodded her permission and I laid a hand gently on her forehead. Physically, she was fine, if a little battered and sore, but she was obviously kept in the hospital for waking up panicking, most likely more than once. The hospital knew better than to release ninja, even Genin, to the streets, especially Genin without ninja guardians. They had done their best to keep her unconscious simply because the hospital didn't have the manpower to help her and she wasn't important enough in the war effort to reassign someone. If Ise and Fusō were already working in the hospital, they wouldn't be allowed in the shinobi section without direct supervision, not with open chakra networks.

"I'll take you," I finally decided.

Kushina didn't move. "Nii-san? Can you carry me? I don't want to see _them_ on the way there."

"Sure." I pulled the top blanket off the bed and wrapped it tightly around her from her shoulders to her knees, the hospital gown was a little breezy, even though she wore a pair of shorts beneath it. I sat her on the edge of the bed to scribble a note on her file to keep her off-duty indefinitely.

"Nii-san?" She asked as I initialed the order, hugging the blanket tightly around herself.

"What is it?"

"I have to go to the bathroom."

"Okay, there's one just down the hall." I picked her up and she tucked her face into my neck. To a normal kid my age, she would have been quite heavy, considering she weighed nearly as much as me, but as a shinobi, I could carry Jiraiya with no problem beyond the awkwardness. I stopped in front of the bathroom door and Kushina hesitated before taking her own weight. She stared at the door like it was a haunted closet. I opened it and showed her there was no one inside. "I'll stand right here and make sure no one comes in."

She nodded.

Two minutes later, the door behind me opened and Kushina leapt onto my back. I staggered forward and nearly crashed into the opposite wall at the unexpected force. Patting her knee reassuringly, I continued to the pediatric ward. Since I was a kid, most people assumed I would be the best with kids, which was a flawed assumption, but I learned to turn treatment into a game anyways. Because of my age, everyone seemed to know me by name.

"Chiro-sensei!" Several kids greeted from the dining room.

I smiled and waved, but didn't stop to chat. Kushina's arms tightened around my neck as if someone was about to pull her away. I slipped one hand into hers and stopped at the end of the hall to scan the room assignments. Minato might have been in pediatric care, but he was still a ninja and they tended to separate the Genin from the other children for safety reasons.

To my surprise, Minato had been placed in a room with three very familiar names: Inoichi, Shikaku, and Chōza.

"You alright, Kushina?" I asked cautiously as I set her on her feet, my hand on the doorknob.

She nodded cautiously and locked her grip around my arm.

I knocked twice on the door and received quiet permission to enter. Of the four boys in the room, only two were truly conscious, and only one mostly mobile. A very thin Chōza sat in a chair beside Inoichi, awkwardly playing a card game with one hand. The other arm was immobilized against his bare chest.

"Kichiro-san," Inoichi greeted as I entered first. The moment the words left his mouth, he regretted it and groaned, holding his side, his cards spilling.

"Let me guess, someone decided your ribs weren't functioning properly while solid and pulverized them in a misguided attempt to rectify to problem."

Inoichi and Chōza laughed, but Inoichi quickly stopped, moaning in pain.

"Sorry, I guess I'm not supposed to make you laugh." I pulled Kushina in behind me.

Both boys' eyes widened in horror when they caught sight of Kushina clinging to me. I subtly shook my head, telling them not to comment. As far as I knew, neither had much contact with her, but they were only a year older than me and had spent a year in the Academy with Kushina, even if they weren't in her class. From the confiscated materials in the corner of the room, all three were already Chuunin and had seen the front lines. Their next words confirmed that.

"The rumors are true," Chōza murmured. "You really are the famous Spirit, or infamous depending on your point of view. Can you really work miracles? I think Inoichi could use one. Shikaku as well."

"No, not miracles," I answered, guiding Kushina over to sit in the chair beside Minato's bed.

Jiraiya wandered over to distract them and I lowered my voice so only Kushina could hear.

"See?" I said softly, guiding her hands into Minato's. "He'll be just fine, okay?"

She pulled the blanket away from his chest to reveal where the civilian doctors had been forced to open up the boy's chest to repair the bone and cartilage pulverized by the kunai. I had only stopped the bleeding and repaired the bare minimum. Bone took ages to heal and used more chakra than I had been willing to risk on someone who wouldn't have been able to fight. He would have an impressive scar to show for it and would be laid up for the next few months. I wasn't going to lift a finger to change that. If he was down, it would keep Kushina off-duty alongside him, though the fact I was sure Genin were guarding the hospital instead of the invisible Chuunin generally on duty, I figured she'd be incorporated into that group as soon as she was cleared, which was unlikely if her hollow gaze was anything to go by.

Considering that fact my file somehow had me flagged as a serious flight risk and I was technically on suicide watch (which I had no idea how that happened, I wasn't the slightest bit suicidal), they wouldn't let her near any sharp or pointy objects for quite some time, just to be extra-safe. Yes, I had mostly-inadvertently benched Minato and Kushina. I didn't regret it. The two of them were little more than children and had been dragged far out of their depth simply by who their team leader happened to be, then found themselves stuck on the ocean floor when I made a name for myself. Most everything now flew over their heads and it was only a matter of time before they drowned.

I made a mental note to flag Sakumo as a suicide risk if his wife died or he failed a mission.

"I need to get stronger, Nii-san."

I sat down in the chair beside her and cautiously put an arm around her shoulders. "You're already strong, Kushina-chan, much stronger than anyone else I know." I placed one hand over her heart. "You're strong where it matters."

My words didn't have the effect I wanted. She burst into tears. "But I'm not, Nii-san! W-when they caught me _that_ time, I wanted to d-die, it hurt so much! I-I knew how much it would hurt you and Minato, but I-I didn't c-care." I glanced at Jiraiya. He was watching us carefully out of the corner of his eye.

I suddenly felt extremely thankful for the years I spent as a CNO while she cried onto my shoulder.

"I saw those kunai first, I should have taken them, not Minato, he wasn't hurt, he could have fought—I'm not strong, Nii-san."

I sighed. "Kushina-chan, you're not weak. When you were captured, your response was perfectly normal."

She only started to cry harder. "Minato nearly died. I was still awake when we got to the hospital and they were shouting all sorts of stuff and it sounded really bad—"

"He's going to be fine, Kushina."

"Stop it!" She sobbed, clinging to my vest. "If it wasn't for me, Minato would never have been connected to you, he wouldn't have been caught if he hadn't tried to protect me and I hadn't yelled threats at them. If I had done _something_ he wouldn't be just lying there!"

"Hey," I shifted so I could look directly at her. She remained clinging to me, her face hidden in my shoulder. "Hey, look at me." She shook her head. "Kushina, look at me," I ordered.

Sniffling, she pulled away but didn't look up.

"Look at me," I said firmly. Finally, she looked up, even if she couldn't lift her eyes above my collar. I figured it was the best I was going to get. "Kushina, _you are not responsible_. It isn't you. It just means you're sick, okay? You're just sick and you're going to get better, okay?"

She burst into tears and hid her face back in my shoulder. I wasn't sure if I helped or just made everything worse. "I-it h-h-hurts," she hiccupped.

"I know, Kushina-chan, I know." At a loss, I just put my arms around her and let her cry.

When Inoichi passed out during Jiraiya and Chōza's conversation, the two left politely, even though I could still hear them in the hallway. Eventually, Kushina cried herself to sleep while I hummed half-forgotten tunes.

At some point, I nodded off, only to wake when Jiraiya returned.

He took the chair from beside Inoichi's bed and sat down on Minato's other side, pulling out an empty notebook and a pencil.

"Did Chōza-san go to the dining room?" I asked.

"Discharged to his mother, who just returned from a mission." A long silence ensued, woven with Jiraiya's constant fidgeting.

"You don't have to stay," I told him when the rustling began to annoy me.

"Yes, I do," he answered quietly. "I failed them and I can't let them suffer the consequences alone."

"You're not responsible either."

"No, but I still have a responsibility to them."

"And if you're needed on the front lines again?"

"Then I'll make sure they'll be fine without me."

I laid my head on Kushina's.

"I managed to get my hands on Sensei's copy of your file, the comprehensive one."

I didn't particularly care, so I didn't answer.

"I'm curious as to why you make a habit of insulting the leadership of this village."

It wasn't a question, so I didn't even bother reacting.

"Not very talkative are you?"

"If you want information from or about me, just ask."

"Very well. Tell me when I'm wrong. Uzumaki Kichiro, nine years old, Chuunin." Technically, I was mentally twenty-nine, but I suppose he was still correct. "You spent the first seven years of your life in Uzushiogakure." Technically, it was Maryland, a few miles outside of D.C., but he was taking about Kichiro, so it was still legit. "You were forced to flee the village with seven other children a little more than a month after your birthday."

"Eight. There were eight other kids."

Jiraiya raised an eyebrow but otherwise ignored my comment. "Shortly after you were settled in the village as a refugee, you were placed in the Academy to become a shinobi for Konoha. While you showed the intelligence and physical capacity for a ninja career in the pre-academy questionnaire, you displayed exceptional maturity and hinted at an unnaturally well-developed sense of morality that objected to participating in the profession." Well, now I knew the purpose of all those questions before I joined the other students. "As such, Hatake Sakumo was tasked with covertly discerning the extent of your moral code and whether it could be broken to create a shinobi." Well, I played right into Sakumo's hands. "You were offered an apprenticeship and utilized the liberties it gave you to attempt to become the first male medic-nin in village history."

"Seriously? No other guy ever tried to be a medic?"

Jiraiya chuckled. "A handful have tried from an intellectual standpoint, but none succeeded."

"I thought everyone was more hung up on the age than the gender."

"Kid, you're a genius, even though you reject the title." I'm an adult being judged by standards set to children. "Not even my genius teammate picked up a subject as fast as you mastered iryo-ninjutsu."

I rolled my eyes. "I'm not sure about your last two statements, but go on, my history from another's point of view is more interesting than I thought."

"Supposedly, while you were training to become a medic, time you were supposedly studying Academy materials were spent learning Fūinjutsu, under the assumption you would become the Kyuubi Jinchuuriki in the case of Uzumaki Mito's death." I was a bit more than certain that the Kyuubi would eventually be sealed inside of me than an assumption would connote, but he was still technically correct. "While you were simultaneously learning two subjects that should generally take several years of intensive study, you spent four to five days a week training with Hatake Sakumo as his apprentice, and passing off original seals as gifts from your sister."

Actually, any seals I used in a spar were Kushina's. Any seals she happened to use in a spar in front of adults were mine. Sakumo had rightfully thought Kushina to be a budding Fūinjutsu prodigy and the Chuunin teachers assumed Kushina's seals had come from Sakumo. No one cared enough to look into the issue. I obviously didn't care when someone made an inaccurate assumption.

"During your time as Hatake's student, you excelled in chakra control, balance, strength, agility, flexibility, and intuition, characteristics that would make you a perfect fit for any Taijutsu style, which Hatake capitalized on by teaching you several radically different styles, all of which you picked up with surprising ease." What could I say, physical training was fun when I could ease or even altogether turn off the pain associated with it, though I didn't dare tell anyone that was what I was doing. "Your skills in other areas were puzzling. You showed almost no aptitude for throwing kunai and shuriken." Because I didn't care to stick people with sharp pointy things. "Yet, when introduced to senbon, you excelled."

Because the fact that the chances of senbon accidentally causing a mortal wound, or even a dangerous wound were slim to none. Not even a direct hit to the aorta would cause anything but a little bit of bleeding and the style of senbon I used were too light and thin to go through bone unless I really wanted them too. The worst damage I could do was take out someone's eye or cause a hell of a lot of pain. If I wanted to, I could paralyze someone's vocal chords and with a little bit of luck, I could put someone into a near-death state for an indefinite period of time. Several annoying Academy students had mysteriously lost their voices for a week when I heard them cussing up a storm and picking on a trio of little civilian girls. Sakumo somehow (I didn't want to know the details) wrangled a Genin team into becoming practice dummies shortly after I started sparring with the Academy students. I managed to knock one of them out shortly before noon and they stayed out until the next morning when I declared the experiment to be over and woke them up.

Jiraiya wasn't finished. "Hatake was faced with pressure from the majority of Konoha's leadership to test how well you would do in both Ninjutsu and Genjutsu." That was unexpected. Sakumo hadn't been at all forthcoming about anything he did outside of our occasional meetings and regular training sessions. I had assumed that Sakumo's relationship with the Hokage was a bit distant, but I was obviously wrong. "Even with that pressure and a few threats, Hatake continued to insist on waiting. In fact, if it wasn't for the fact that he gave a specific date to begin your training in Ninjutsu, you would have been transferred to a different Jōnin."

I snorted. "That would not have gone over well. It still won't." I probably would have refused to train until Sakumo was reinstated. Then again, I was fairly sure 'issues with authority' had been in my file from the beginning. It was probably changed to 'severe issues with authority' following Kushina's kidnapping, but I was strangely proud of it.

"Does that mean you would be unwilling to work under a different captain?"

I thought for a moment. "Depends on who that captain is."

"Do you have anyone in mind?"

I hummed. "Maybe Tsunade, but I doubt there's room for a puny little Chuunin like me on your team."

"Anyone else?"

"I don't know all that many people right now." I'd know plenty of people in the future, but a vast majority of the main characters hadn't even been born yet. I suppose I did know tons of people from the warfronts, but I only knew them in passing and names were rarely included, unless they were stupidly powerful Jōnin everyone knew anyways.

"What about Katō Dan?"

"Why do you mention him specifically?"

Jiraiya shrugged. "He's one of the primary candidates for the next Hokage." I knew the future Sannin was trying to gauge my reaction, but I didn't give him one. Then again, I should probably reassure everyone that it wasn't authority that I had a problem with, but certain authority figures.

"I met him briefly on the Kumo border. Decent man and likes medics. Guarded me himself while I worked so my team could get some real rest, which probably saved our lives the day we left the base." Honestly, I liked the man. He was more willing than anyone else I'd ever met, in this world, to engage in ethical discussions, and unlike Sakumo, he hardly ever used the traditional village dogma, or even the dogma of the shinobi world in general, to back up his claims. We had a nice debate while I steadily worked through their triage system and almost completely healed all but three of their injured. Even though I probably should have rested, he didn't object when I moved onto the advanced triage patients. He went so far as to sincerely thank me after I managed to save two of the three, right before he knocked me out with a sleeping jutsu that didn't wear off for a good fifteen hours. The next time I saw him, I planned to give him a hard time for it, but I held no hard feelings towards him, which surprised me.

Jiraiya scowled.

"What? You don't like him?"

"I hate the whelp."

"You're an ass. I suppose the only reason you don't like him is because Tsunade gives him the time of day she denies you."

"You are nine. How the hell do you pick up on something like that?"

"He was wearing the Shodai's necklace when I met him, and I happen to be the only medic allied with this village willing to heal your Tsunade-inflicted injuries."

"That's because I'm pretty sure you're the only male in this village who's not the slightest bit scared of her."

I chuckled. "That's because I'm not perverted."

"That'll change, kiddo, trust me."

"No, I don't think it will," I murmured to myself, lost in memory, my eyes closed.

* * *

 _Author's note: Greetings from Houston!_


	18. Chapter 18

When I wasn't working, I realized that the hospital was boring.

I had no qualms about abusing my abilities in medical Ninjutsu, and instead of shifting when my arm fell asleep from the weight of Kushina's head, I used a bit to restore circulation and ease the stiffness of remaining in one position for an extended period of time. That quickly turned into a chakra control exercise when I realized how hard it was to alleviate stiffness without movement. Not only did I have to maximize blood flow, but I also had to manipulate lymphatic fluids without turning my body into a giant cramp, which was damn near impossible considering lymph was _everywhere_ while blood stayed on specific paths. While I practiced, the hospital lights gradually dimmed for the night.

Minato's sedative wore off a few hours after midnight. Sometime before then and after our conversation, Jiraiya had fallen asleep, leaving me in my silent, selfish vigil. I waited until Minato finally opened his eyes in the dim light before sliding out from beneath Kushina. She stirred slightly as I propped her against the back of the chair, but I was glad she was still a heavy sleeper.

"Nii-san?" Minato asked as I leaned over him, sliding my hand into his.

"It's me, Minato-kun, how're you feeling?"

"Throat hurts."

"Do you want me to get some pain medication for you?"

"Conscious?"

"No, you won't stay conscious."

"Ninjutsu?"

"Sorry, kiddo, you're healing the long way this time."

"Kushina?"

"She's right here. She's just fine, I'm fine, everyone's fine."

"Time?"

"Middle of the night. You've been out for a bit more than a day, and a portion of that was spent in surgery."

He relaxed.

"Can you wiggle your fingers and toes for me?" When I saw his toes move under the blanket and his hand squeeze mine, I relaxed as well. "Good job. Are you sure you don't want me to get some anesthetic?"

"No medicine."

"For now." I felt his forehead, which was still feverish. "Think you can eat and drink something?"

"Just water."

"It's both or I put you back under, Minato-kun."

"Chest hurts."

"I'm sure it does. A kunai through the heart will do that to you. Sit tight for a few minutes and I'll be back, don't move or I knock you out and you'll wake up strapped down." I didn't mean the threat, but he probably shouldn't have been awake for another day at least.

I hurried to the small kitchen open during the night and grabbed a small package of the first thing my hand landed on. It was a bit difficult to blindly fish out a spoon and straw as well as fill a glass of water without making a mess or a bunch of noise, but I managed. When I returned, Jiraiya was somehow still asleep, as was Kushina. As gently as I could, I inclined the bed just enough so Minato could eat with some kind of normalcy and not choke on his water.

"Thank you," he murmured as I folded his weakly trembling hands around the glass and guided it to his mouth.

I turned away to straighten Kushina's neck so she wouldn't wake up with a cramp. When I looked back at Minato, he had finished the glass.

"Take it easy, Minato-kun, you haven't had anything in your stomach for a while. I brought you some kind of food. It was dark so I'm not exactly sure if its mashed bananas or applesauce."

Minato made a face.

"I'm pretty sure it's applesauce. The bananas are generally kept on the top shelf." I opened the half-cup container and placed it in Minato's hand and the spoon in the other.

He clumsily took a bite. "Definitely applesauce," he informed me.

"See? I always grab the good stuff."

"The good stuff would have been ramen."

I didn't bother arguing with him, he never had the joys of pizza. My infrequent attempts to make it hadn't been very successful, considering half of the ingredients just didn't seem to exist and I couldn't remember the exact recipe. Word to the wise: garlic and ginger were certainly not the same thing and could not be substituted for each other.

I did make pancakes on a semi-regular basis, but without thick, maple syrup, they never tasted right. At least eggs were a thing.

While Minato ate, I refilled his glass with water. When he finished the small meal and the second glass of water, I left to quickly wash them. When I returned, Jiraiya was finally waking up, albeit slowly. Tipping Minato's chart at an awkward angle to catch enough light to write by, I scribbled down the pertinent information.

"Is there someone else here?" Minato asked when I returned to his side.

"Yes, Jiraiya is on your other side while Inoichi-san and Shikaku-san are both injured and unconscious behind me."

"I can't sense."

"You're barely lucid enough to communicate, take it easy. Your sensing is going to be shot until you're taken off the pain meds."

"I don't want—"

"Trust me, enjoy being a Genin. There is almost no pain control on the lines."

Jiraiya finally sat up and put a hand on Minato's shoulder. The boy flinched away before he recognized his teacher and his face lit up. "Sensei! You're back!"

"Yeah, gaki. How are you feeling?"

"Nii-san just asked me that."

"I was asleep, so I missed it."

While they started to argue, I went to wake up Kushina. I thought she was happy to interact with Minato, but it was difficult to tell while she looked like she was about to burst into tears at any provocation, even though she sat on the bed beside him and fussed over him. I sat in the chair and hovered in a state between sleep and meditation, monitoring the conversation just enough to stop any stressors if need be.

"Kichiro says that all the time," Kushina murmured and I heard her lay down.

"Quiet! He'll hear you!" Minato answered.

Their voices lowered to the point I could barely make out who was speaking, much less what they were saying. I wondered what about me could be so interesting that they would need to be so secretive. It made me slightly paranoid, but I shoved away the feeling and resisted the urge to eavesdrop, eventually landing in my own mindscape, a few inches from the Kyuubi's snout. I swore and jerked backwards.

 **Go away.**

"It's my head."

 **What do you want?**

"Pizza."

 **Bless you.**

"Pizza is food."

 **Why are you here?**

"Because I enjoy your company."

 **I'm flattered. You got my company, now go away.**

"You need to learn to be polite."

 **I have no need to abide by your human customs.**

I rolled my eyes. "Then I'll call you 'Muffin' and you can't get mad at me."

The Kyuubi growled in warning.

"Right, you need to learn to be polite."

 **As much as they are unnecessary, I do know the proper conduct of you humans.**

"Really?" I rolled my eyes. "Show me." I bowed. "Hello, my name is Kichiro."

 **Nice to meet you, Kichiro-** ** _chan_** **. My name is Kurama.**

"Nice to meet you, Kurama-sama," I responded by pure reflex, stunned. I never expected him to share his name with me.

 **Do not share that name with anyone.**

"Understood."

 **There are humans attempting to get your attention. Leave.**

Instead of unceremoniously throwing me out like he did the last time, Kurama let me wake myself up from my meditation.

I came back to my body to find Jiraiya shaking my shoulder.

"You alright, gaki?"

"Yeah, I'm fine, what's wrong?" I asked.

"You weren't paying attention," he deadpanned.

"I was meditating, isn't that the point?"

Jiraiya pointed towards the window where a messenger hawk was perched on the windowsill and his hand was bleeding. I stood up and held out my arm to the bird. I was more than a little disturbed by the hawk's gaze.

It held still while I detached the tightly furled page from its leg. As soon as the message was free, the hawk took off, circled the room, and flew out the window.

Shaking out my arm, I sat back down and opened the black paper, confused. Only Jōnin and team leaders generally received messages via hawk. I was neither of those.

(-_-)

 **WARTIME MISSION SUMMONS**

 **Rank: S**

Issued to: Uzumaki Kichiro 007309

Reporting time: 10 minutes from reception of orders

Briefing place: Hokage Tower

Type: Infiltration, Village Services, Combat

Teammate(s): Katō Dan, Orochimaru

Please arrive prepared for departure.

Authorized by: Sarutobi Hiruzen, Sandaime Hokage

(-_-)

I'd never even seen summons before, much less received an S-ranked one, though Sakumo had taught me how to determine if they were legitimate. I did know one thing: there would be absolutely no way I'd be working with Orochimaru. The paper slipped from my hands and landed between my feet.

"Nii-san?" Kushina asked. A moment later, she stumbled off the bed and fell to her knees beside me, snatching up the page. Before she could look at it, Jiraiya plucked it out of her hand and incinerated it while Kushina leapt up, her protest dying on her lips.

"They're mission summons," he explained. "They should only be seen by the recipient. You have nine minutes to report, Kichiro-kun."

Minato stumbled off the bed and clung tightly to Kushina's arm for support. Thankfully, I was one of the few people in the hospital who regularly used IVs in patients, Minato was stable enough not to be attached to oxygen, and heart monitors didn't exist yet, so he wasn't attached to anything that would cause problems. I stood up and faced them. This world didn't have treatments for PTSD, no one but me could do anything for them. Every second I was gone left them suffering from something they didn't understand. I was completely willing to ignore the orders, to take them and hide if I had to, damn the consequences, but I knew if I did, my absence on the mission I knew was waiting for me would set Kumo up to continue the war or declare war on Konoha in the future, causing far more harm to far more people than just the two _children_ in front of me. I didn't even have time to tell them _why_.

When I glanced between them, I could see they knew I had to abandon them, I could see the hurt, pain, and fear in their faces.

" _God help me_ ," I pleaded, but no one else could understand English. I chose my next words to the two of them carefully. "I'm so sorry," my voice begging. "I'm sorry, I don't have any excuse, I don't have any justification, I'm so sorry." My words failed. Slowly and deliberately, I sank to into a traditional seiza and bowed, pressing my forehead against the ground. Kushina started to reach for me, but without her support Minato would have fallen. I completed the bow and stood up. "I-I'll come b-back, I promise."

(-_-)

Before they could recover from their stunned silence, I leapt onto the windowsill and dashed away across the rooftops. I had six minutes left to replace all my mission supplies, excepting my weapons, and make it to the Hokage tower.

"Urgent mission!" I exclaimed as I swung into the first shinobi shop I laid eyes on. It was still too early for the normal pre-mission preparations to begin for the day. I started to rattle off the things I needed. It would have taken ten minutes for a civilian to have gotten the things together, but since the shop owner was a former kunoichi, she managed to haphazardly toss everything in a pack small enough for me to easily fight while carrying in half that time.

"Come back alive, Uzumaki-san," she said while pushing it over the counter. She'd get payment from my account using the village credit system.

"I will," I promised and took off with a minute left to reach the Hokage tower. When I landed in front of the tower exactly a minute later, an ANBU materialized in front of me, and I barely managed to stick enough chakra into my feet to come to a dead stop.

"Basement, one minute," The ANBU stated without inflection then stepped out of my way. I was glad I chose to run to the Hokage tower instead of attempting a shunshin, my shunshin was extremely uncontrolled and not worth the ensuing collisions or the reprimands for using a jutsu forbidden so close to the Hokage tower. I took a deep breath and stepped inside the tower, walking quickly. Once I reached the stairs down, I decided on going down the stairs the shinobi way, since it would take me a good five minutes otherwise. The first three flights were like normal stairs, zig-zagging back and forth. Beyond that, it was a spiral staircase. Angling myself just right, I bounced off the walls and made it down the regular flights before pausing at the top of the spiral staircase.

After a few seconds of deliberation, I jumped up and attached my hands to the ceiling and swung down like I would play on monkey bars. A full-size adult wouldn't have enough room to generate the force necessary to zip down the stairs faster than terminal velocity, at least not without getting their knees scraped off by the stone wall. If it was under any other circumstances, I would have whooped. The adrenaline rush of such a fall was amazing.

Unfortunately, like all falls, controlled or not, they didn't last forever. When I was suddenly flying straight, I swore an alarm and collided with someone. Hard.

Luckily, whomever it was knew I was coming and neither of us went splat.

"I knew you were mad about that sleeping jutsu, but I didn't expect attempted murder, _smart-aleck_ ," someone wheezed as I took a shaky step back.

"Sorry, _Danny Boy_ ," I muttered, looking up at the man in front of me. Pale blue hair obscured his face as he doubled over, but I recognized Katō Dan anyways. He made a face at the name

"Well, you're on time at least, so head on into the office, the Hokage is waiting for you." I glanced around the hall to see a much younger and less-creepy looking, though obviously irritated, Orochimaru watching me.

"What? Did one of your experiments go bad or something?" I snapped at him, probably a bit more aggressive than was strictly necessary, though the way his face went completely blank on the turn of a dime made me a little nervous. It was enough proof for me the he was at least partially behind the disappearance of the Uzumaki child from the orphanage, not that I had any way to pursue the lead.

"Kichiro," Dan snapped. "The Hokage wants to see you."

He steered me into a bare room where the Hokage paced impatiently. "You're late!" The man barked and closed the door behind me, leaving Orochimaru and Dan in the hall.

"My little sister is showing obvious signs of PTSD so you can go screw your complaints because I'm pretty sure Minato has the exact same thing and _no one else can help them_. You're lucky I'm here at all."

"You're needed most on this mission."

"If it wasn't for the fact that people would die if the Hachibi isn't sealed securely, I wouldn't be."

He decided to ignore my disrespect. "I've worked out the details with the Raikage. Since you will be the main component of this mission and the primary operative, I'm putting you in joint leadership of a team. You are to respect their input—"

"I will not, under any circumstances, work with Orochimaru."

The Hokage's gaze sharpened as I crossed my arms defiantly. "Why?"

"You won't believe me or even hear me out if I tell you, nor do I have evidence. Still, I will not work with Orochimaru."

"You and a single Jōnin are not strong enough to control a Jinchuuriki."

"I don't care. I will not work with Orochimaru."

"There are no other Jōnin available with the skill set necessary—"

"I don't care."

The Hokage huffed in frustration. "If not Orochimaru, then name another."

"Sakumo."

"He's out of the village on a mission."

"Kagami."

"Also out of the village."

"Tsunade."

"You're one of our best medics, I can't risk another on this mission as well."

I wracked my brain for names of people I knew from this time. "Um, Uchiha Fugaku."

"That boy is barely a Chuunin, he would be a liability at best considering Kumo's interest in Dōjutsus."

"Inuzuka Jiro."

"Out of the village."

"Shimizu Arata."

"Left the village last night."

"Katō-san's shadow clone."

"Please take this seriously."

"Um, the Nara clan specializes in long-range jutsu like Katō-san, what about one of their Jōnin?"

"Only one of the Nara currently in the village is a ninja and he is currently incapacitated and still a Genin."

"What about one of the other Uchiha?"

"The Uchiha are a clan of frontline fighters, the average time their Jōnin spend in the village during wartime is about ten hours, again, Kumo has invested an interest in Dōjutsus."

"If all of these Jōnin are fighting then who's protecting the village?"

"The ANBU are guarding the walls alongside several Chuunin. Genin conduct patrols, most without a Jōnin leader."

"So you're saying that this village is practically begging to be attacked! No wonder Suna managed to get inside and conduct a torture session!"

"Will you stop rubbing that failure in my face!" He shouted.

"Kushina, and probably Minato as well, are _mentally ill_ because of that failure. I can help them, I can fix them, and instead, I'm here ending a war and helping to prevent another one from beginning!" I shouted right back. "I could tell anyone with a basic understanding of Fūinjutsu how to use the seal and be back where I should be in less than an hour. If the village is in such a dire strait that every single Jōnin is needed on the lines, then Jiraiya won't be able to stay with them and those two _children_ are going to be forced to deal with problems that reduce the _strongest_ of _adults_ to paranoid, homeless, beggars who can't even take care of themselves!"

"Do you think I want to let them suffer? My own child is in his third surgery right now after being caught in the crossfire of one of my fights! If the comfort of three children are the price, I have to pay it to ensure thousands more children stay alive and healthy and out of another war!" He responded, pacing.

"Minato is a once-in-a-century genius who will probably make full Jōnin before he turns sixteen. Kushina is one of the last Uzumaki in the world, not some spare to replace me if I screw up and die. Your child is _your child_! Just because we're at war doesn't mean that lives stop to watch!"

He stopped and sat down against the wall opposite me, rubbing his face. "Kichiro-kun, the only person in your generation this village absolutely cannot afford to lose is you. At the same time, you are not a Kage, you are not a leader, and you don't understand the sacrifices that have to be made. As mature, intelligent, and skilled as you are, you are still one of the children you so ardently defend. Inside the village, my son, Minato, and Kushina are safer than they could ever be outside of it, you're leaving the relative security here and refusing the best protection I can offer you."

"The Raikage will honor his agreement."

"No one can promise that."

"If you're looking for reassurance, you won't get it from me," I said kneeling down in the center of the room. "My stance will not change. If there is no other suitable Jōnin, then I will go alone or with Katō-san and trust the Raikage to honor his agreement."

We both stood back up. I kept my eyes focused on the ground as he stopped in front of me. "I hope your trust is well-placed," he murmured, a hand on my head. After a moment, he walked past and opened the door.

"Orochimaru left, he wouldn't explain why," Dan murmured as he entered. "You alright, _smart-aleck_?" He asked as he caught sight of me and draped an arm around my shoulders.

"I'm fine," I answered, distracted as to why Orochimaru would just leave. Had my comment made him that paranoid?

I quickly refocused my attention as the Hokage explained the mission. Twenty minutes later we stood at the village gates facing the Raikage.

"This is going to be an awkward trip," I muttered, kicking a stone down the path in front of me.

"Then let's start this out right!" Dan chirped, then started to sing while I stared at him incredulously. " _O Danny boy, the pipes, the pipes are calling._ "

What. The. Hell. That was certainly not any Japanese tune and the words were certainly English.

* * *

 _Author's note: Biggest news of today, June 7th: **Happy Birthday, Kichiro!** I'm not sure if I ever mention the specific date in the story itself, but if not, today's the day!_


	19. Chapter 19

I made it until noon before I had to say something.

" _You know English,_ " I stated unoriginally, in English. The Raikage sent us a strange look but didn't comment.

" _'Smart aleck' isn't Japanese, kiddo._ "

I gaped at him. Both languages were so ingrained in me, from my own twenty-seven years in my world, and the seven years of Kichiro's memories as well as total immersion for two-and-a-half years.

" _When did you get here?_ "

" _Two-and-a-half years ago. I 'woke up' seconds before the invasion and subsequent destruction of Uzushiogakure began._ "

" _I'm assuming you died just before that, you died in a different world._ "

" _Yes. I stopped some teenager from mugging a kid and he shot me in the back of the head. Certainly not the way I wanted to go. What happened to you?_ "

" _I was helping the search for survivors when one of the aftershocks of the Haiti earthquake hit and the building collapsed on top of me._ "

" _How old were you?_ "

" _Thirteen, I had gone with my father to help with the relief effort the day after the first earthquake hit. I 'woke up', as you say, as an infant, terrified out of my mind for weeks before I caught sight of the Hokage monument and realized where I was. I still had absolutely no idea what was going on, I only ever read the first few chapters of the manga before I left for the relief effort, and there was only one face on the mountain and half of another being carved. So I started over as an orphan with a head start. I chose my old name to go by and made my given name my new surname._ "

My hopes of someone I could pool knowledge with plummeted faster than a paratrooper with a broken parachute.

" _When did you die? How old were you?_ "

" _A bit less than a decade after you. I was twenty-seven._ "

" _Damn, a full adult and then being stuck as a child. That's rough, buddy. You still sane in there?_ " He knocked on my head.

" _Ha, I think so._ "

" _It's not all bad here, kiddo._ "

"Could you please speak normally?" The Raikage grunted.

"Our conversation has absolutely nothing to do with anything you would care about."

"Jinchuuriki or not, I can still crush you, boy, so don't cross me."

"I'll cross whomever I wish, Kage or not."

"Enough, Kichiro, he's not the Hokage."

"He still—"

"Enough."

"Fine."

The rest of the day passed in mindless silence. Travelling at shinobi speeds would get us attacked before Dan would be able to show the mission assignment. At this speed, it would take us nearly a month to get to the border.

As night fell, no one bothered to call for a stop. I didn't need one considering I had the advantage of the Kyuubi supplying energy should I need it and I decided now would be the best time experimenting with breaking down adenosine with chakra. After ten minutes, the Raikage grabbed my shoulder, which made Dan whip out a tantō, only for it to be blocked by the Raikage's Jōnin.

I glared up at the Kage.

"What are you doing?" He demanded, pointing at my forehead.

Taking a step back, I escaped his grip. "Experimenting."

"With what? Why?"

"It's just an Iryo-Ninjutsu technique I'm trying to develop, no reason to get paranoid. It's as boring as an empty library just walking all day and I wanted to take advantage of the fact that we're apparently not stopping for the night and do something useful."

"Make camp," he ordered me.

I rolled my eyes. "I don't take orders from you."

"Treat it as a training exercise, you're still a Genin."

"Chuunin, actually, I'm a Chuunin and have been a Chuunin for several months. I know how to make a damn camp, I've spent enough time on the front lines and infiltrating, so go make your own camp, I sleep in the trees." To prove my point, I bent my knees and leapt upwards, aiming for the tallest branches of the tree that would support my weight, far above where any shinobi would travel. Before I made it ten feet up, Dan stood in my path, glaring.

" _Just because you're physically a child doesn't mean you have to act immaturely._ "

" _I was never a mature adult and since I can't hide my intelligence, I have to act like a child somehow._ "

" _Then at least act like someone has authority over you before you piss off the wrong person and get put down for being a loose cannon._ "

"Is that some verbal Konoha code or something?" The Raikage's Jōnin asked.

"No," Dan answered leaping down. I followed, appearing properly chastised. "And no other questions about it will be answered."

(-_-)

The days passed monotonously. No one spoke unless it was absolutely necessary. I entertained myself with chakra control exercises and learning the basics of fire manipulation. I had a tenuous understanding of wind, earth, and water, even though I knew a total of six actual elemental Ninjutsu, which was a pathetic repertoire for a Chuunin. Iryo-Ninjutsu didn't count, even though I could heal almost anything if I had enough time.

By the time we reached the border, eleven single words and one phrase of expletives had been spoken over the two weeks before. Eight of them had been Dan telling me 'no' when I opened my mouth to ask permission to do something. Three were the Raikage telling me 'stop' when my attempts to learn the basics of fire manipulation without a proper teacher led to bright flashes of light, sharp pops, or a mixture of both. After the third reprimand, the Raikage was fed up with my constant failure and demonstrated how to properly complete the exercise. It only took a few days after that to get it right. At which time I made a show of attempting to practice the basics of lightning when the Raikage nearly gave me a heart attack with an extremely focused burst of killing intent. I switched back to practicing medical ninjutsu after that. At least then, the chakra never left my body and no one could complain.

The expletives came from the Kumo Jōnin who found himself pranked by yours truly. I wanted to prank the Raikage, just to say I did, but every attempt failed via him staring down at me until I dismantled the trap. I was just a Chuunin promoted too quickly, I wasn't sure what got me thinking I could pull one over on a technically-enemy Kage. Dan knew of the Uzumaki penchant for practical jokes and was properly wary. The Kumo Jōnin had not been warned, so when his turn came to take point, I used a shadow clone to set up a prank spider web about a quarter-mile ahead along our projected path during my period on watch. As the camp was packed up, I deliberately dragged my feet to the point where the entire party was quite annoyed with me. The reaction was better than I had anticipated. I expected the flailing, spluttering, maybe a yelp. I did not expect curses and scrubbing and the Jōnin to start beating imaginary bugs.

The Raikage was genuinely amused, if disappointed. My dispersed shadow clone had left residual traces of my chakra in the area and the Jōnin _should_ have known _something_ was up. Alas, the arrogant and annoyed fell to me. Dan had the tact not to laugh and I quickly moved on ahead so no one would see my smirk.

(-_-)

The prank may have lightened the atmosphere, but as soon as we reached the point to where Konoha had conquered, the Raikage's hostility towards me in particular shot to new heights, probably because I made it possible for nearly twenty percent of Konoha's fighting force to return to battle while his numbers continued to diminish.

When I 'graduated' from Konoha's medic-nin program, I had silently promised myself that I would help anyone who approached me peacefully. Until we crossed the no-man's land between the two armies, I had only ever met Konoha nin peacefully. When we entered the Kumo camp, one of the first thing I noticed was the tarps set up over the station for the wounded. While the Raikage and Dan spoke with the leader of the camp, I found myself wandering over to the injured, just like I had done for weeks with Sakumo's team. Old habits die hard

Inside, there was slightly more than thirty people. About two-thirds had little chance of a continued career or even survival without the help of a medic-nin. No one stopped me, so I knelt down beside one of the feverish men near the edge. Someone had attempted to gut him, but didn't manage to make the blow immediately lethal. Whatever medic was responsible for the base had sewn his skin back together, but by the look of the shinobi around him, there wasn't a real medic-nin available and they were regulated to field treatment. I could have fixed him up in three minutes, but an unfamiliar infection was impairing his breathing and it took me another ten minutes to fix. I was nearly finished when a giant hand grabbed my arm and tore me away, throwing me onto my back.

"Stay away from our people, bastard leaf-child!" I barely managed to roll out of the way of his kick and blast him backwards with an overpowered version of my wind battering ram. I ducked under a second strike and sucked the second assailant into the ground up to his neck.

"Wind Prison Jutsu!" I cried and caught a third attacker before he could land a punishing blow to my ribs. I didn't even see the Raikage appear behind me and grab my neck, disrupting my focus on the prison. I tried to stab his hand with a wind-strengthened senbon but it shattered when it hit his lightning armor.

"That is not the Ninjutsu of a six-month-old shinobi!" The Raikage roared at Dan, who was crouched defensively, a hand on his kunai pouch and eyes darting to the quickly-assembling ninja.

The Raikage's grip was too strong and too tight for me to suck in even a mouthful of air. The pounding in my ears quickly drowned out the rest of the exchange while I kicked and clawed at him. When my peripheral vision began to darken, he finally dropped me. I landed on all fours, gasping, and making a mental note to figure out how to bypass the actual intake of air with medical Ninjutsu. The chakra burns around my neck were the least of my worries.

"The hell, you people!" I snapped as soon as I was able. "I was just healing the man!"

"Kichiro!" Dan snapped.

I stood up and held a hand glowing with medical Ninjutsu over my throat. The Raikage grabbed my arm and pulled me towards the edge of camp in the direction I assumed Kumo lay.

"We're leaving," he growled.

"I can see that," I muttered back. "But at least a quarter of the men under that tarp will die in the next week if they don't receive proper medical treatment and half of those remaining will never be able to fight again once they recover."

He stopped abruptly. "You never got close enough to determine that."

"No, but I have eyes and I spent five months healing in camps just like this on every front of Konoha's fight. Unless they're deliberately hiding it, I can get an idea of the severity of the injuries by sight. Let me go back and I can promise three-quarters of the men under that tarp will be up and fighting within a week." I'd also get a fairly good idea of the median chakra levels of their fighting force, the standard of the general health of his army, the approximate length of time ninja generally spent at the borders, and if I was a bit invasive in the healing, I could determine their general diets as well, but that wasn't the point and I certainly wasn't going to tell him that. By his expression, he already knew exactly what Konoha medic-nin were capable of and was weighing the risk versus the reward. His urge to do everything in his power to help his comrades won.

"We leave at nightfall. Heal what you can, but know you will run under your own power." He released me and marched off, signaling to the audience.

Dan leaned against the rock wall part of the tarp ceiling was attached to. I glanced around and saw several Kumo nin watching me. A few seemed just curious and were balanced out by several who were obviously hostile. One of those hostiles had the look of a medic. The half-dozen others were either scoffing at me or just curious. Only one stepped underneath the tarp. It was a blue-haired girl, obviously a fresh Genin and a few years younger than Kushina.

"C-can you please fix To-chan, shinobi-san?" She begged and pointed to one of the more critically injured, his mess of blue hair dyed red with blood.

I nodded and let her pull me over to him, hovering by my shoulder, just out of my sight, while I worked on healing him. He had a severe concussion to go alongside the gash from the nape of his neck to his temple. He lost half his ear, but that was the least of his worries. His collarbone was broken in five places, which I wasn't sure how a single bone could have that many breaks, but I just set the bone and urged it along the first sages of healing.

"He has an infant child at home and his wife is dead," a kunoichi pointed at a man a few feet away.

I went to him next. The man was conscious, but barely so. The flesh of his arm was cut to ribbons, infected, from the elbow down and the tourniquet was about to destroy the limb. "Blood type?" I asked, one hand sifting through my medic pouch to pull out a tube with a needle on both ends.

"A-negative," the kunoichi answered.

"Is anyone else the same?" I asked. Eyes glanced around, but no one was willing to step forward. "I can't do squat for him, I'm B-positive and he's A-positive." I jerked a thumb at Dan, who was not happy I knew his blood type and very not happy I announced it to a bunch of potential enemies.

Someone stepped forward and sat down, holding out their arm. Guided by medical chakra, I inserted the needle into one of the medium sized arteries in the donor's forearm and placed a wad of bandages in his hand. Luckily, Kumo nin seemed to have similar basic training in assisting medics as the Jōnin generally taught Konoha Genin teams, and I had taught Minato and Kushina before they graduated.

I swallowed past a lump in my throat and waited as the blood filled the thin tube before inserting it into the vein on the inside of the recipient's upper arm. A volunteer stepped forward to hold the half-dead man down to prevent more damage. I took off the tourniquet and started the healing, putting the torn flesh together like a morbid puzzle and clearing the infection. After five minutes, I ordered them to stop the transfusion, letting them figure it out by themselves. The man's lower arm was about half the size it was before due to fluid loss and losing a fair chunk of muscle, but by the time I finished, he would be able to use it just fine if he stuck to some kind of rehabilitation routine the Kumo medics could figure out. It would leave some impressive scarring that I didn't care about.

The shinobi who donated blood wordlessly pointed at another man with severe lacerations, clumsily stitched up with the same style of needlework as the first ninja I healed.

The next three patients sported severe burns and dehydration.

After that was someone dying of poison.

Two more ninja were on the point of death via exsanguination and I had to begin three more blood transfusions.

Konoha had nearly double the number of battlefield medics than any of the other countries, but the makeshift hospitals were always twice as busy. The payoff was that Konoha's mission survival rate was twice as high, even if the success rate was only average.

Sure, the physical health of the leaf was exemplary, but the mental health care was nearly nonexistent beyond 'you're not going to murder your teammates or yourself so you're fit for duty', just like every other country. I wasn't sure they understood that 'crazy' was an illness, not a choice.

When the sun began to set, I found myself nearly finished and glaring at a man who shoved a kunai into his own shoulder a few minutes before and seemed to expect me to heal him. When I finally made him cringe, I started the healing. It quickly became evident why he injured himself, but it didn't appease me the slightest.

"You know, stabbing yourself makes the original injury ten times more difficult to heal," I informed him as I placed my hands on his shoulder.

At least he had the decency to look slightly sheepish.

"There was no original injury," the Kumo medic spat.

"Well, that's just incompetence on your part," I retorted. "A civilian knows there's something wrong with inflammation."

"Kichiro," Dan warned. I ignored him. I was, to everyone here, nine years old and had just healed several dozen people out of the kindness of my heart. I was allowed to be overtired and snappy, especially after having to deal with crazy stitching, incompetent preliminary treatment, and infections that shouldn't have happened.

The medic bristled, but none of the spectating Kumo nin made any defense, which only made him angrier. "I'd like to see you do better with no supplies."

I winced. " _Bro_ , the only supplies I used was for the transfusions."

"You have no idea—"

"Of what? What it's like to run a medic tent? No I have no idea, but I did spend five months playing travelling war doctor, so I know that regular Chuunin can stitch up their own puncture wounds better than you." Shots fired.

"That's enough," the Raikage interrupted. "It's time to go."

"I'm almost done, hold on," I protested. A minute of the Raikage's impatience later, I pulled my hands away. "I'm tired," I announced, only to have Dan slap the back of my head.

"You made your bed, now lie in it."

The idiom didn't translate very well, but I got the message. On my own, I would have collapsed from exhaustion around midnight, so a few hours after we left the camp, I began to draw on the Kyuubi's chakra. I found out then that the Kyuubi had a bit more pride than I thought. Drawing on the Kyuubi's chakra was one thing. I could probably do so without drawing any significant attention towards myself, besides my eyes turning a bit red.

 ** _That 'Raikage' is too secure in his own abilities. Crush that security._**

 _What?_

 ** _That man does not understand the power I wield and I will not be ordered about by the likes of him, even by proxy._**

 _No one ordered anything._

 ** _I wouldn't expect a small-minded creature like you to understand._**

 _I take offense to that._

The Kyuubi's chakra fluctuated wildly. **_Stop and make camp._**

"Shit!" I yelped and nearly crashed to the ground, disoriented. The Kyuubi flooded my body with chakra and burned the bottom of my left foot. "Ow, ow, ow, _ow_!" I cried trying to slow my momentum while hopping on one foot. Dan, the Raikage, and the four Kumo Jōnin we picked up from camp all stopped and spun around to face me, ready to fight. I continued to hop around swearing while I struggled to take my shoe off to stop the irritation. Finally, I just sat down and the Kyuubi snapped back his chakra, laughing at the silent invectives I heaped on him. The bottom of my foot was disgusting and untouchable.

"Heal it and let's keep moving," the Raikage ordered.

I winced at the Kyuubi's growling and covered my ears, even though it didn't help.

"Raikage-sama, healing chakra burns from another person is a complicated process. Healing chakra burns from tailed beast chakra is doubly so and requires more chakra than I have at the moment. Unless someone volunteers to carry me, I ain't moving."

 ** _Good, little rat._**

 _I am not your pet!_

He just growled.

"Also, I may be able to control the Kyuubi, but I can only do so with his cooperation. If he wants something as simple as stopping for the rest of the night, I'm damn well going to give it. Now, am I going to hop to a suitable campsite or are you going to show me?"

I expected the Raikage's face to purple or his fists to clench angrily, but he just sighed. "You and you, stay here with him and politely escort him to the place we decided on for the sealing. Everyone else is coming with me to Kumo. I'll retrieve the candidates."

At that, he left.

(-_-)

Four days of easy travel later and being watched at almost all times, I landed in the top of a temple an hour before noon.

"What is this place?" I called down, surveying the surrounding land.

"A temple," one of my escorts grunted. I wished I at least knew their names, but when I had asked, they just ignored me.

"I can see that, but its abandoned and I want to know why."

"Poison," the other explained.

"Why?"

"Traitors."

"You are awful at answering questions. Were they betrayed or did they turn against someone else?"

"Betrayed."

"Can I explore or is it holy ground?"

"Do what you like, but try and find a place suitable for the sealing."

I scowled. "That was the point." After a minute longer of perching at the highest point of the tower, I slid down the sloped roof and swung inside. The place was obviously built for shinobi, the reinforcement seals on the walls gave it away in an instant. I spent a good three hours copying them for Kushina and deciphering them for myself. It wasn't Uzumaki work, which neither of us had much experience with.

Keeping an eye out for writings and more seals, I prowled around the temple until it was too dark to see. I camped separately from the Kumo nin that night. Sometime during that night, the Raikage returned with an entourage of children, which I only saw when I looked down at the camp in the morning. No one called for me, so I finished my exploration before returning to the group.

"About time you showed your face," the Raikage growled at me.

"Yeah, well, unless you want a Bijū rampaging your country then you'll be glad I found a place I can set up the proper security seals the Hokage gave me."

"Took you long enough."

"There was interesting seal-work. I'm not a genius you know, so it took me a while to figure out if it would interfere with my seals. Mind introducing me to the newcomers?" I dismissed his attempt to gain superiority.

He whistled loudly and the kids roughhousing a distance away under a somewhat familiar man's watch ran up and stood in a disturbingly straight line, peering at me curiously. Brand-new hitai-ate glinted in the sunlight and I self-consciously rubbed mine, grungy from lack of care. A Jōnin stood behind the half dozen mini shinobi, his hand on one of their shoulders. They were certainly younger than me, if bigger. Off to the side, Dan sat with another girl, who looked to be barely four, and played patty-cake with her, fascinating the child with the English words.

"Over there is the host of the Nibi," the Raikage explained, quiet enough that the children couldn't hear him. "Have fun travelling with a toddler in wartime. These children are the strongest candidates for the Hachibi."

"Why do I feel like you've already made your decision?"

"I have a preference of which child is chosen, but any are acceptable. The young man behind them is my son, A, and his hand is on his adopted brother, B." The Raikage continued introducing the other children, who were beginning to fidget under my gaze, and still unable to hear our conversation, though I was certain A could hear us just fine.

"May I talk to them or do you expect me to decide on looks alone?"

"Do whatever you need. For once, the rivalry between our villages comes second. I want my people safe."

"Are they all orphans?"

"Yes."

"Figures. Do they know why they're here?"

"No."

"Fine, is there any particular details you want me to avoid telling them?"

"Konoha and Kumo made a pact for peace and one aspect of that pact was Konoha agreed to make a reliable Jinchuuriki seal for the Hachibi and perform the sealing. One of them will be chosen as the next Jinchuuriki. That is all they need to know."

"Do I have your word you won't interfere?"

"Don't kill them."

"Pull your son away from them and put the Jōnin at a perimeter of thirty meters."

"What do you plan on doing?"

"Scaring the living hell out of them. They ought to know what they're signing up for and if they back down from my challenge, they won't be able to control the Hachibi."

"I was told the seal would do all of the work."

"Well, whoever told you that was wrong. I wrote the seal. In about five years, give or take a few months, the willpower of the Jinchuuriki will be what keeps the seal intact. If the Jinchuuriki wants to release the Hachibi, the seal will have no power."

"That's not what I agreed to."

"No, you agreed to Konoha sealing the Hachibi so it won't escape, not so it couldn't be released. If it makes you feel better, the Hokage didn't know about my stipulation. Treat them properly, make everyone else treat them like a human being and you won't have any problems."

"I'm willing to let you make one of my most promising Genin into a monster. You have no right to dictate—"

"The Jinchuuriki are not monsters! We are people with sentient masses of chakra sealed inside of us. There is a very clear distinction. The Kyuubi hasn't changed my DNA, and the Hachibi won't change the DNA of whomever its sealed inside. I am still human. Maybe I don't know firsthand the full implications of being a Jinchuuriki, but I know how most of them are treated, and I will not subject anyone else to that."

The Raikage was not happy. "Do not harm those Genin and I will overlook your insubordination. Your reasons are valid."

"I'll fix them when I'm done and I don't answer to anyone but the Hokage." With a single motion, the Jōnin all leapt away, leaving me in charge of six Genin, all bigger than me, even if they were younger and less experienced. They first fell out of the mostly-attentive lines and moved to flank me, assessing what kind of threat I posed. "Do any of you know what a Jinchuuriki is?" I began conversationally, holding my chin high and closing my eyes.

"A monster," one of the Genin volunteered.

"A demon," another snapped.

"They steal little kids."

"They've destroyed our village several times."

"They're pure evil."

"One killed my parents."

"You're all wrong."

Immediate protests and immature verbal abuse flew towards me. I stood still until it stopped, the kids confused by my lack of retaliation, but not yet willing to escalate things.

"What am I?"

"A Konoha nin," one spat as if it was the worst insult in the world. The others agreed.

"Oh I'm so much more than that you foolish brats. I'm a Jinchuuriki, the Jinchuuriki of the Kyuubi."

One of them leapt at me. I backhanded him across the face hard enough to make him hurt, but not cause any serious damage. Completing a full turn, I threw senbon into each of their chests, stopping them dead and giving them each an impressive dose of a hallucinogenic meant to amplify their emotions. Only then did I open my eyes.

"Before you attack me, let me tell you something. By the end of this day, one of you will be chosen to become a Jinchuuriki. The things you described a Jinchuuriki as will be what everyone thinks you will be. How many of you like nice, warm hugs? After, no one will dare touch your hideous body. Your friends will hate you, shun you. The civilians will refuse to sell to you. Parents will hide their kids from you. The worst part will be that you'll still be you, everyone else will turn against you because they simply don't understand."

They stood rooted in their places, terrified. One of them collapsed, crying.

"You're a Konoha ninja! Konoha ninja always lie!" B shouted. I took a step to the side to look him in the eye.

"Am I lying? Check my pulse, it's steady. My breathing is perfectly normal, as are my pupils. I'm not fidgeting or defensive. Tell me, am I lying?" Even if I was lying, I could control my body well enough to fool most jōnin.

"The Raikage—"

"The Raikage has a Bijū to seal. He must make a monster to stop one."

"A hero would never do something so awful!" Another kid shouted at me.

I grabbed the arm of the kid who collapsed. "Look around you. There's at least a dozen Jōnin surrounding us all right now. The Raikage himself is watching. Just watch, they won't do a thing." With a sharp jerk, I bent the kid's elbow the wrong way until the bone snapped. The kid screamed. I knocked him unconscious the second my point was clear. Two of the kids turned tail and ran, leaving three of them about to attack me. I pulled on the Kyuubi's chakra and let the weight of it wash over them, studying their reactions. One collapsed from the pressure leaving only B and another Genin standing, their clothes smoking slightly and swaying in the spot. "You're pathetic, you know that?" I sucker-punched B in the face. "There was six of you and only two of you are left."

"Let's get him, Motoi!" B snarled and the two leapt at me together. I knew in a test of brute strength against them I would lose, chakra enhancement or not. When both of them stepped forward, I managed to catch them both in a Genjutsu that had them fighting a fake me. With a bit of skill and concentration, I made it so they both thought the not-me had knocked out the other and the not-me shouted constant taunts and insults at them. To the Jōnin, they probably looked like absolute fools fighting nothing while I worked on healing the kid whose arm I broke. It was stretching my concentration thin, but I managed and finished healing slightly before either boy made progress against the not-me. Motoi managed to take down the not-me first with an unexpected jutsu. I kept everything at their level, otherwise he never would have succeeded. I watched as he had the not-me completely at his mercy.

"You're a monster murderer who only deserves death!" He snarled and stabbed a kunai through my head.

"That was disturbing," I commented, releasing the Genjutsu on him. "You fail." I caught his subsequent punch with one hand and knocked him out with medical ninjutsu. When he hit the ground, I shook out my hand. "Little brat hits hard," I commented to myself and turned to where B was still fighting the not-me.

With a clever twist of his dual swords against my sticks as well as a very sneaky trip I probably would have fallen for if it was a real fight, he sent the not-me tumbling to its back.

"You're here for a reason. Why? Why aren't the jōnin doing anything about this fight? They could crush you in seconds but they're letting me fight. I'm not stupid, I recognize you from the Bingo book, Uzumaki Kichiro. What are you doing in Kumo and how did you get the Raikage's permission?"

I didn't answer.

"You were playing with me. You're a much better fighter than what you showed, you lost because you wanted to. Why? What do you want?"

I stayed quiet.

"Fine, then take your secrets with you, you're not worth my time." He knocked out the not-me with a well-aimed punch. I dissolved the Genjutsu.

"Good job, B-san. You passed the test."

He whirled around in surprise. "Test?"

"Yep."

"Kai!" He shouted, but there was no Genjutsu to dispel.

"You were right in thinking I was playing with you, but don't feel bad, I was promoted to Chuunin before I finished my first mission, which brought me straight to the war front and earned me a fancy moniker. I'm here because I'm an Uzumaki and a Jinchuuriki with the skill to seal the Hachibi as part of the peace deal with your village."

"What kind of test was that?" He demanded. "What was the purpose?"

"To see if you had the qualities to not go crazy when you become the Hachibi Jinchuuriki."

"What qualities?"

"Mercy, forgiveness, and maturity are the main ones."

"You tempted me to kill you?"

"It was just a Genjutsu," I shrugged. "And you didn't, so we're cool."

"I don't get it."

"It's alright, brother," A appeared at B's back. The Raikage followed with a large amber jar under his arm.

"When will you be ready to conduct the sealing?" The Raikage asked.

I scowled up at him. "You could just say you want me gone as soon as possible. Before any sealing is done, I need to talk to B."

He thrust the jar at me as well as a scroll. I took them warily. "The Hachibi is sealed in the jar and the scroll has instructions on how to slowly release him. At the end of the scroll is a seal. Activate it when you're finished with the sealing. Until then, the two of you will be the only individuals within ten kilometers, for safety reasons. I don't want to see your face again until you are finished."

B quickly turned to his adopted brother, alarmed. The two conversed quietly while the Jōnin picked up the other Genin and left. I exchanged a glance with Dan, who nodded once before turning and leaving with everyone else. The Raikage leapt away, and after a moment, A followed, leaving us alone.

Turning towards me, B lifted his chin, resolved.

"You don't have to look tough for me, kid, I don't give a damn."

"You're littler than me!" He protested.

"Yeah, sure, you're still younger. Come on, let's go inside to talk, there's some things I have to tell you."

* * *

 _Author's note: Greetings from Dallas!_


	20. Chapter 20

_Note: At reader's request, there is a self-harm trigger warning for the second half of this chapter._

* * *

B followed me into the heart of the temple, his head down. I closed the door and set up Kushina's system of privacy seals from my bag that I left in the room once I determined I would use it.

"What are you doing?" He asked.

"I don't want anyone listening, at least not until you decide you want to share what I tell you with someone."

"What are you talking about? You're crazy."

"I'm not crazy. Sit down." I took a seat on the floor in the center of the room. Warily, B sat down across from me. Slowly and deliberately, I took off my hitai-ate and stripped off my gloves, showing him the dark seals on my skin. He stared at them without comprehension. "These seals are part of the Shitagau, which is a seal that makes its victim incapable of lying to, directly disobeying, and betraying the person who wields it, at least, not without significant harm to themselves. I'll come back to this." I slowly pulled my gloves back on, but left my grungy hitai-ate balanced on my knee. "The day I became a Genin, someone kidnapped my sister. Uzumaki chakra is exceptionally compatible with sealing as well as perfectly suited to safely contain even the most powerful of the Bijū, which makes the Uzumaki perfect candidates for becoming Jinchuuriki. They kidnapped my sister with the intent of turning her into a Jinchuuriki, but we stopped it. When we returned to the village, the Hokage and the previous Kyuubi Jinchuuriki, who was getting old, decided it was time to pass on the mantle."

"Why do I care about how you became a Jinchuuriki?" B grumbled. "Isn't it supposed to be a village secret?"

"Ha, you don't need to care about my story, but you still need to know it. Anyways, they wanted to pass the Kyuubi on to my sister. She was an all-around better candidate: impressionable, obedient, and eager to please, plus she had a far better understanding of sealing than me. I was a less-than-desirable candidate, to put it nicely. I was an antagonistic, hard-headed, devil-may-care, insubordinate child who was far too smart and perceptive for my own good. I wouldn't let them turn my sister into someone scorned and detested by the general populace. For some reason, they let that opinion stand and sealed the Kyuubi into me that evening. They also placed the Shitagau, which basically makes me a slave to the Hokage."

"Again, why do I care about your sob story?"

"It's a warning. Becoming a Jinchuuriki means you'll have access to power and lots of it. That makes people greedy. No matter how honorable the intentions are, you will be used and potentially abused. Most people will see you as less than human, feral. I've done what I could to make sure the Raikage treats you like a person, or at the very least as a regular shinobi, albeit with a special skill set, but that will only go so far. Your life is going to be hard, an upwards battle for positive attention. You must understand that and consent to it before I will perform the sealing."

"I have my brother. He'll make sure that—"

"Your brother is set to be the next Raikage. As much as he may want to, he can't shield you from most of it. He can't stop your friends from pulling away."

B shifted uncomfortably. "Motoi would never do that."

"No, B, he would in a heartbeat, everyone would. The Hachibi killed his father; his father died because a Jinchuuriki lost control. Maybe he'll come around eventually, but you're going to be hated until you prove to everyone you can be trusted, which won't happen for a long time. Just your existence means you're a threat."

"You're wrong."

"I wish I was. Now, are you willing to go through with the sealing or should I call the Raikage back and have him find a new set of candidates."

"How old are you?"

"Nine."

"You talk like an adult."

"I've spent the last two years of my life with adults, it makes sense I'll start to sound like them."

"You're nine and you say you can seal a Bijū? How strong are you?"

"Sealing a Bijū is a lot different than fighting one. I'm an Uzumaki, so sealing is in my blood, but I'm nowhere near the level I need to be in order to fight one. You said you recognized me from the Bingo book so I'm sure you know who Hatake Sakumo and Senju Tsunade are. I made my way through Tsunade's medic program in half the time it takes adult medics and Hatake is my Jōnin-sensei, he's been training me since I was seven."

"You give out information easily. You know that can be used against you."

"Trust me, if you think anyone can catch Hatake without getting their hands chopped off, they're welcome to try. As for my sister, keep an eye on what happens to Suna over the course of this war and you'll get an idea about what happens to someone who threatens children of Konoha."

"You're not a very nice person."

"I'm not, at least not anymore." I pulled out the scroll with my seal on it. "I'll ask again, are you willing to go through with the sealing."

"Why did you pick me?"

"You didn't take revenge for my insults, you didn't let them really bother you. You're strong and you have someone to take care of you. You also didn't collapse under the Kyuubi's chakra. Any more questions?"

"Will it hurt?"

"Probably, but it won't cause any lasting damage."

"I don't—" he broke off.

"If you don't want to do this, I won't seal the Hachibi inside of you, no one can make me."

"You said the Shitagau—"

"The Hokage left the choice of who completely up to me and the Raikage can't order me around."

"He'll hurt you—"

"Then I transform into the Kyuubi and devastate his village."

The boy gaped at me.

"Unlike most Jinchuuriki, a full, voluntary transformation probably won't hurt me. If it does, fine, I'm free to head to the afterlife."

"You're insane."

"Am not."

"Are too."

"I will not be a part of this immaturity. Do you want time to think?"

"I-I agree." He bit his lip uncertainly.

"Becoming a Jinchuuriki is not part of the contract you signed when you became a shinobi, so it's not your duty to do this. You are accepting of your own free will, nothing your brother or the Raikage says should tip your decision either way, you understand that, right?"

After a moment of thought, B nodded.

"Once you become the Jinchuuriki, you understand that you will be taking on the responsibility of guarding everyone around you from the rampage of the tailed beast sealed inside of you."

He nodded again.

"Fine." I pulled out a scroll from one of my pockets and held it up. "This is a complete explanation of the seal I'm going to use. One of the most important points for you to remember is that the seal only works as long as you want it to. Secondly, the Hachibi is not a mindless force of nature. He is intelligent and has emotions just like you. He's spent a long time going through a cycle of imprisonment, subjugation, and brief moments of freedom. He's bitter and angry about it, just like anyone would be if they spent more than a lifetime as a prisoner. The Hachibi is immensely powerful, you'll be able to feel that power through the seal. I'll warn you once. Do not try and use it without the Hachibi's consent. Finally, if you ever need help, I'll do what I can to help you, just find me, okay? Just because we're from different villages doesn't prevent us from being brothers by circumstance. I'll always help out a family member."

I let it sink in while I stood and added the Bijū-suppressing seals from the Hokage to the walls of the room. B watched me carefully even when I stopped to do nothing more than read the Raikage's instructions.

"I'm ready," I finally announced, pulling out my sealing kit.

B nodded and I felt like I was talking to a bobble head.

"Take your shirt off and lie down."

He obeyed and I started to paint the seal onto his stomach.

Four horribly tedious hours later I finished.

"This is your absolute last chance to back out, are you sure you want to go through with this?" I asked.

"Absolutely," B said with more conviction than ever before. I winced as the Kyuubi's chakra bubbled over my skin.

 ** _Just to be safe,_** he explained.

With one hand, I unlocked the jar with the Hachibi inside. His chakra filled the room and would have knocked me out if the Kyuubi hadn't been filtering it.

 **Kyuubi!** The Hachibi snarled. **How dare you manipulate your host like this!**

I activated the seal and the Hachibi's chakra started to drain into it. B screamed in pain as the Bijū chakra rushed through his body.

It was unnerving to have my mouth moving without my consent, but I let the Kyuubi say his piece. **You are angry and impulsive, just as I was. Until your mind clears, and you are able to help me in my quest, you will remain sealed.**

 **Who are you to decide that? You have no authority—**

 **When you understand, you know where you can speak with me.** I gasped as the Kyuubi's chakra receded and the last of the Hachibi was pulled inside of the seal. After taking a minute to control myself, I turned to B, who lay curled on his side and facing away from me.

"You alright?" I asked him.

"Give me a minute."

I fell backwards, my arms spread, and more exhausted than I expected. "Can I call the Raikage here or do you want time to yourself?"

"Time to myself."

I struggled to my feet. "Come find me when you're ready." I deactivated the seals around the room and left with my bag and supplies.

"Wait!" B called after me. I stopped, but didn't go back. "You can call Raikage-sama."

"Okay. When you come out, bring that jar with you."

(-_-)

Just before the sun finished setting, The Raikage landed on the steps of the temple.

"Where's B," he demanded.

"In the temple, center room. May I go home now?"

"Wait here."

I waited, watching the sun creep towards the horizon. A few minutes later, the Raikage returned, holding B's hand and carrying the jar.

"Your teammate and the Nibi are straight in that direction," he pointed back towards Konoha. "Kumo thanks you for your services."

"You're welcome, goodbye."

"Wait!" B said as I took a step away.

I stopped.

"I can still see you if I need something, right?"

"Of course, goodbye, B-san."

"Goodbye, Kichiro-sama."

I leapt forward and ran in the direction the Raikage pointed. It only took me a few minutes to reach Dan, who was accompanied by a team of Kumo Jōnin and had the Nibi Jinchuuriki hanging around his neck, asleep.

"We need to get back to Konoha _ASAP_."

" _A child can't travel at shinobi speeds, Kichiro._ "

" _Then let me go! I did my job; I even have the trust of the Eight-tails host. Minato and Kushina need me most right now._ "

" _Once we get to the border, you can run straight back._ "

" _If you let me carry her, we can move top speed, no risk to the child._ "

"Kichiro—"

" _Please!_ "

"Fine." He handed me the sleeping girl. "We're ready to go, we can move at top speed."

I slipped off my haori and wrapped it around the girl so she wouldn't freeze at the speeds we would be moving and secured her head against my shoulder so she wouldn't be dangerously shaken. After two days and nights, we reached the Kumo border. As soon as we made it passed Konoha lines and left the Jōnin escort behind, I handed the Nibi Jinchuuriki back to Dan and took off towards the village, sustaining myself with the Kyuubi's chakra. No one tried to stop me, and I only slept twice. When I landed in front of the village gates, no one stopped me as I marched into the village, but out of nowhere, the Hokage appeared beside me.

"Am I right in assuming you had no intention of reporting?"

I bent my knees to jump away from him, but he laid a hand on my shoulder.

"Status of the mission."

"Successful."

"Minato and Kushina have been put under house arrest as a precaution until you clear them, they're not allowed to interact with civilians. They're at Minato's apartment, since it's in a shinobi-heavy area, unlike yours."

"Where's Jiraiya?"

"You have three weeks of leave. Take it before I change my mind and have your written report for the mission turned in by the end of this week, no need to report to the hospital."

I took a step back and dashed to Minato's apartment. As I raised my hand to knock, the last time I saw them flashed across my mind. I felt more than awful for leaving them and fully expected at least one of them to shoot out harsh words.

I knocked twice. I could hear familiar voices inside, but didn't listen in on the conversation. I slouched, but stayed in full view of the little fisheye lens in the door.

"Come in, Nii-san!" Minato called out.

Warily, I opened the door. To my surprise, it wasn't locked, though there was a nasty explosion seal inked onto the floor, which I stepped over, swinging the door closed behind me.

I scanned the hall in front of me. "Hello?" I asked, cautious as I slipped off my shoes.

"In the main room," Minato said, he sounded off. As I stepped around the corner, I barely managed to block a bare foot from taking off my head. I expected an angry confrontation, not a trap.

With a yelp, I jerked backwards, only to have a thin hand appear out of nowhere and press a crinkle of paper against my back, then activate a seal before I could twist away. Lightning coursed through my body and I screamed, collapsing.

When I finally regained my bearings, my hands were tied above my head and I was lying on Minato's bed with both him and Kushina sprawled on top of me, half-asleep. I obviously lost more time than I thought, considering I was already sweating underneath them and my hands had gone numb. I jerked experimentally on whatever bound my hands to the metal bar across the headboard and received bullets of pain up my arms for my troubles. I could have gotten out of regular rope just fine, but they had used ninja wire, which had enough tensile strength to lift an entire city, or so I was told. The point was that the thin wire would cut through my wrists rather than break, and it was wrapped around several times.

I tried to channel chakra to my senses to do a security sweep, but they had sealed away my chakra, which was impressive, considering they would have had to deal with Bijū chakra as well. By that point, I could tell that both of them were now fully awake. Kushina fidgeted with the hem of my shirt. Belatedly, I realized my Chuunin vest and gear was missing. I couldn't see their faces, but I could feel their hands start trading signs over my stomach. To my frustration, I couldn't see anything and my paltry sensing abilities were shot. Deep in my gut, I could feel the Kyuubi, but the sealing made communication impossible. I took a deep breath.

"Can we talk?" I asked softly, wriggling my fingers attempting to reestablish a little bit of blood flow.

"No," Kushina mumbled.

"Okay, why?"

Minato's fist slammed into my gut without warning. My breath left in a choked huff and it took me over a minute to regain because both sets of arms tightened around my middle.

"Why am I tied up?" I asked instead.

That earned me a rather malicious pinch from Kushina. I probably deserved to be stuck as a living pillow, but it didn't mean I should have to worry about my hands dying. I gritted my teeth and started to kick myself upright against the headboard, but I couldn't gain enough leverage to overcome the friction keeping me prone. After a few seconds of struggling, two sets of legs locked around my own. I took a moment to wonder how in the nine circles of hell I made it into this particular position, suffocating under two children.

"Can you please untie me?"

Both of them were forgiving people, so I could understand the clinginess, even if it made me feel sick with myself. What didn't make sense was the fact that I was tied up. I could feel them sharing a look, even though I couldn't see their expressions.

"Do you want me to beg?"

"No," one of them responded, I couldn't tell who.

"Okay, then why am I tied up?"

No answer.

"I can't do anything or fix anything if you don't even talk to me."

Their arms tightened to the point I could barely breathe. I wasn't claustrophobic, but claustrophobia was beginning to set in.

"I love you both, but I can't read your minds and I don't know what to do." The last part was wheezed out.

Their grip tightened further. I could only take the shallowest of breaths and the fact that my arms were above my head further restricted my breathing. I started to scrabble at the wire around my wrists. No matter their age, they were ninja and there was a very real possibility they could unintentionally kill me at this point. It was a testament to their skill that even if I dislocated my thumb I wouldn't be able to get out of the wire without losing a hand, or at least several fingers.

When the edges of my vision began to darken, I started to panic. "Unless you're actually trying to kill me, you need to let go, now!" For a moment, I thought they wouldn't, but after a second, they both jerked away. I wheezed in a breath as Minato cut my wrists free. Rolling onto my stomach, I coughed, struggling to draw in oxygen, my ribs aching.

"Nii-san? Nii-san!" The two Genin cried as I slumped facedown onto the sheets.

"I'll be fine, just give me a minute," I assured them, still wheezing and especially lightheaded. I wished I still had my adult body, which would have probably been fine with the abuse and found a new respect for parents with shinobi children.

The moment I sat up, both of them lunged at me and slammed me back against the wall. I groaned. Had I been able to reinforce my body with chakra, the rough treatment wouldn't have bothered me, but my body just wasn't that tough on its own. I hugged them back anyways.

Kushina all but filled my lap and Minato wedged half his body into the gap between my back and the wall, his face buried in my neck. "You have to talk to me, you two. Why'd you jump me when I got here?" I asked, still breathless. "I'm not angry or upset, I just want to know why."

Their arms tightened around me in answer.

"Gentle, please be gentle!" I begged and they loosened their grip. Tears started to dampen my shirt. "I want to help the two of you, you both need help, but I can't if you don't talk to me."

I still didn't get a response. I sighed and laid my head back against the wall, closing my eyes. Normally, Kushina was all too willing to talk. Without her commentary, it felt strange. Eventually, I started to nod off in the silence, only to jolt awake when Kushina shifted then flinched, pulling her arm towards her chest. Before she could tuck it away, I grabbed her wrist.

Her fingernails were coated with dried blood. By itself, it was fairly normal. All but the most meticulous of ninja had a perpetual crescent of red under their nails. Mine was especially prominent, considering I had killed and cleaned a small rabbit the night before as a small meal and only washed my hands in a stream after the blood was mostly dried by the building of a small fire.

Kushina, though, had no reason for blood under her nails. Minato's wounds should have closed ages ago, so even if she was helping Minato clean them, they shouldn't have been bleeding and the blood should have washed out by now. She tried to pull her hand away, but I held tight. She had sleeves on, which was uncharacteristic, but she was also wearing Minato's clothes, which was somewhat normal, especially considering she had probably spent several nights, at least, at his apartment.

Before she could protest, I shoved up her sleeve to reveal a half-hearted attempt at bandaging several cuts across the inside of her forearms. Minato started to pull his arm away from me, but I grabbed his wrist as well and shove up his sleeve to find similar marks, as well as blood under his fingernails.

"Am I right in assuming these were self-inflicted?" I demanded, releasing them.

After a moment, Minato nodded. I laid my head on his and tightened my arm encircling Kushina.

Taking a deep breath, I struggled to slow my heart rate. "Have you cleaned them?" I asked.

Minato shook his head.

I thought for a moment. "Have you cleaned yourselves?"

Another negative.

"Okay then, let's do that now."

Kushina shook her head emphatically.

"Alright, why not?"

"No water."

"It's not going to hurt you."

"Promise?" Minato demanded.

"Promise."

Kushina's legs locked around my waist as I scooted over the bed, Minato following closely, his hands clutching my waistband. Carrying Kushina was difficult without chakra, but I managed. I was also taking a risk by letting them keep my chakra sealed away, because if one of them freaked and hit me at full strength before I could dodge, I could be seriously hurt. Even so, the fact that they both knew they could easily overpower me probably helped keep them calm.

In the bathroom, it was a bit cramped as I turned on the water and partway filled the tub.

"Minato, you first." I sat Kushina down on the counter beside the sink and held out a hand to the blond. Cautiously, he took it and I guided him, fully dressed, to the tub and sat him down on the edge then swung his feet inside. I washed them gently with a small towel while his fingers tangled into my hair. "See, it's not going to hurt you." I pulled away and untangled his fingers. "I'm going to wait right outside the door—"

"No!" He protested. I flinched back at his vehemence and hit the wall just as he threw himself at me and knocked me to the ground. My head cracked against the hard floor. I didn't think I blacked out, which was a plus, but I almost wished I had in light of the instant splitting headache.

I groaned and looked down at my hand. It trembled and my vision was blurry. Not good. I definitely had a concussion. Even if I had access to my chakra, I would never screw with my own head.

"I hurt Nii-san," Minato whined from somewhere to my right, horrified.

Shit. Stupid child body. Instead of helping Minato, making up for my absence, I probably just alienated him. I pushed myself upright and looked in the direction of his voice, only to see the cupboard under the sink slam shut.

I tried to reach out to him but if it wasn't for Kushina, I would have face-planted. I leaned heavily against her to get to a point where I could sit down beside where Minato disappeared. I tried to open it, but Minato held it shut. "Please come out, Minato, I'll be fine."

A choked sob answered me.

"It was just an accident, Minato, please come out."

No answer.

"Please, Minato," I begged. After a second of silence, I tried the door but it was still stuck. "Minato! Open up, please!" I started to panic. He may have grown into a powerful, level-headed Kage in the future, but at the moment, he was an impulsive child on a self-destructive spiral, locked away, alone, and armed with more stress and misplaced guilt than any child had a right to. "Minato, say something, please!"

Because of my physical age, training could only do so much for my body strength-wise. Without chakra, I was on par with a civilian adult's strength at best. Minato lived in a shinobi complex and because of that, everything in the house had basic strengthening seals so an impromptu wrestling match didn't unintentionally destroy the entire complex and a moment of frustration didn't result in a maintenance bill. I still initiated a wrestling match for the door. It opened slightly and I wedged my fingers in the gap, hissing as the door closed on them. After a second, Minato let go and I flung the door open. My fears weren't completely unfounded as the boy started to slash at his arm. I reached into my pocket, which the seal inside thankfully hadn't been emptied, and pulled out one of the few senbon I kept in it and threw it through Minato's wrist, pinning his arm to the wall behind him. He dropped the kunai with a choked cry and I caught it, tossing it away from him before he managed to wrench the senbon out of his wrist. I yanked him out of the cupboard and wrestled him to the ground.

I sent brief thanks to Sakumo for teaching me how to wrestle against someone stronger and dove into the struggle. Minato tried to run, but I had more than six inches and at least twenty pounds on him as well as more experience. Superior strength wasn't going to get him far without a clear head to go along with it. Mindful of the still-healing wounds on his chest, I managed to flip him on his back, pinning one of his own arms beneath him and pressing my thumb against the hole in his other wrist as he prepared to throw me off.

"Minato, calm down," I ordered. He tried to throw me off, but I had wedged my shoulder underneath the counter of the sink. He may have had double the raw strength to work with, but I had all the leverage and the cool counter against my cheek felt heavenly considering I was struggling against a fit of lightheadedness. "Minato, I'm not screwing around right now, you have to calm down. You're not in your right head and I need you to promise me you're not going to ever do something rash like that ever again. Promise me, Minato, please."

"Nii-san—"

"Please, Minato. Promise me you'll never scare me like that again."

"I hurt you—"

"It doesn't matter! It was an accident." I responded. If he struggled now, I wouldn't be able to hold him down. "Please, Minato, promise me that you won't ever try and hurt yourself again."

"I-I promise." I let out a relieved sigh and slipped into unconsciousness.

* * *

 _Author's note: Greetings from Houston!_


	21. Chapter 21 - Part 4

"Spoons and cookies," Minato suggested.

"You use spoons to steal cookie dough!" Kushina answered. "Streets and tables."

"They're both places where you can get food," Minato responded. "Corks and cups."

"They have to relate, Minato!" Kushina exclaimed.

"They do, Kushina, the connection is drinks," I fired back.

"What?" They both chorused.

"Corks seal bottles with drinks in them and you drink out of cups."

"There wasn't supposed to be a connection," Minato complained.

"Then it's against the rules, Minato, you know better. My turn: mountains and orange juice."

Both fell silent, thinking.

"Ten seconds left…Five, four, three, two, one, time! I believe I win that round with fifty points and it's my turn to pick the next game."

"Wait! What's the relationship?"

"They're both made by squeezing."

I got two blank looks.

"You squeeze oranges to make orange juice and two pieces of land mush together and mountains come up."

"Yours are impossible, Nii-san," Kushina complained.

"I guess I'm just smarter than you."

"Are not!" Minato retorted. "We scored higher on the Genin test than you."

"You do realize I didn't even take the written test and smoked almost everyone else on the physical test."

They scowled at me.

"Besides, the Genin test was months ago and I'm a Chuunin already, so of course I have to be better than you."

Someone knocked on the door. Before I could open my mouth, both Genin slid past me and hid underneath the bed. I sighed. I couldn't blame them for being jumpier than water on a hot skillet, but I thought I had been making progress. They agreed to retell what happened, several times, after I explained why they kept uncharacteristically losing control of their emotions and freaking out over innocuous things. Over the past week, I had figured out a number of the triggers that set them off and did my best to attach positive connotations to them. Whoever was at the door knocked again. I closed the door leading to the bedroom/living room/kitchen and peeked out the front door. In an instant, I recognized the Hokage and made no move to open the door further.

"What do you want? I still have two weeks of leave and I turned in my report days ago."

"You're needed."

"I refuse."

"Uzumaki-kun—"

"As the highest ranking shinobi of my clan, I am, by default, the clan head and it will take a three-quarter majority of the adult and shinobi clan members to replace me. Unless you manage to persuade Ise, Fusō, and Kushina that I am not fit to lead, then as a clan head, I am within my legal rights to refuse any mission on the grounds of duties to my clan." Kushina peeked over my shoulder and Minato pressed his ear to the door.

"You must be a legal adult—"

"In case you've forgotten as well, I'm a Chuunin, which means I am a full, legal adult. I even bought a house with my savings so the orphans I brought from Uzu would have somewhere nice to live and won't have to compete with a hundred other children for food and a place to sleep. In fact, it's a rather nice house, and if they wanted, they all could have their own room!"

The Hokage pinched the bridge of his nose in exasperation.

"Do we really have a house now?" Kushina asked.

"Yep! As soon as you're cleared for civilian contact, we can go see everyone in it. _Hokage-sama_ , is there anything else?"

"May I come inside? The information I have for you should not be spoken across the doorstep."

I gritted my teeth and relented, stepping out of the way and opening the door before retreating down the hall. The Hokage gestured into the main room. Minato eagerly led the way. In the center of the room, an impressive pyramid of my not-drugged senbon stood upright, balanced against each other.

"Impressive," the Hokage commented. "Who made it?"

I gestured towards the two of them, who beamed proudly, before I sat down in one of the two chairs around the kitchen table. "What do you want to tell me?"

"Suna surrendered as of yesterday morning."

"Good. Does Konoha have the one-tail now?" I asked sarcastically.

"No, but Katō-san returned with the Nibi Jinchuuriki last night."

"They're early."

"Yes. Iwa has made an alliance with Ame against Konoha."

"Why are you telling me? I can't do anything about it."

"With help from Ame, Iwa has taken full control of Kusagakure."

"I still can't do anything about it. Entire villages are a bit above my weight class."

"Weight class?"

"Skill level," I explained, slightly annoyed at how badly idioms translated.

"I'm not stupid enough to drop you into the fighting force. From what little information that has made it back, Ame shared several deadly poisons with Iwa, who is utilizing them to their full potential and devastating our ranks. I believe you can repeat your miracle from Suna and become an effective counter."

"I know a copy of what I did made it to Tsunade and several made it to Konoha. The other medics should be perfectly capable of figuring it out."

"Attempts have been made, but as of today, not even an antidote has been found to the poisons, much less what you've taken to calling an immunity."

"Tell the medics to treat the symptoms of the poison. The body will break down the poison by itself, as long as it can function, and build up a tolerance by itself—"

"Just through skin contact, medics are dying from this poison as well. Uzumaki-kun, your advice is helpful, but it is no substitute for your innate understanding of what we're up against."

I crossed my arms

"Let me impress this upon you. People are suffering and dying in that fight. Konoha may have won against Suna and forced peace with Kumo, but we did so at great cost to ourselves. Less than half of our original fighting force is still intact, Genin and a very small handful of ANBU now make up the entire village defense."

"Then why aren't you out fighting?" I accused.

"I'm leaving tomorrow morning for Iwa," he stated. "There are no longer enough shinobi stationed in the village for me to effectively manipulate the war effort from here."

I gaped at him.

"Nii-san, you can't stay back just for us," Kushina murmured, kneeling beside me and leaning against my leg.

"We're not that important and we'll be fine until you're home again," Minato promised.

"You got to go help. Those people need you more than we do."

I turned a sharp gaze to the Hokage, but his expression held no triumph, only exhaustion and guilt. He just picked at a groove in the table, eyes averted. "Not only is every available man needed against Iwa, but that need is reflected in Kiri with similar circumstances, though the medics have better luck in combating more familiar Kiri poisons. This village had next to no defenses remaining and the Daimyō is on his way here, considering even in its current state, Konoha remains the safest place in the Land of Fire. Danzō and the rest of my council are leading the fight against Kiri. I know your opinion on them, so I won't ask you to head there.

"You are needed here and you are needed in the war. If you remain here, you will need to direct the Genin, identify and record fatalities, heal the wounded who make it back, and facilitate communication with me, Danzō, the Daimyō, and Konoha's civilian leadership."

"That's quite the sales pitch. Basically, you're considering appointing me temporary Hokage, head medic, and ambassador. Again, you do realize I am a nine-year-old Chuunin with only a week of experience in the leadership of a clan of eleven, nearly all of whom are children." That wasn't exactly true. I was a Second Lieutenant in my old world, but that only lasted two years and my responsibility was child's play in comparison. Oh, the irony.

"Please stop treating this like a joke, Uzumaki-kun. If I had a choice, I would have thrown you from the forces a long time ago. I would much rather have you somewhere I can keep an eye on you, but your skill set and sharp tongue are well suited for a role here, as well as provides a maximization of resources."

I wanted to bolt. Unless I actively sought it out, I tended to avoid responsibility. "You want me to stay here?" I asked.

"The responsibility I'm asking you to shoulder is not something I would ask of any other child and I would never order it. You made no agreement to leadership in your shinobi contract, thus you have no obligation to accept, but if you do not, you will be accompanying me to Iwa no matter what titles you claim. The so-called laws you reference are merely guideline in time of peace. I am still the absolute authority in this village."

I felt like a total, immature ass. "Excuse me for a moment, Hokage-sama," I said solemnly and stood, bowed once, and hurried out of the room. I barely made it out of the room before I had to stop, my knees weak. How the hell was the village still standing if it was in as dire straits as the Hokage implied?

"Why is Nii-san upset?" Minato asked.

"He's not upset, Minato-kun," the Hokage explained patiently. "He just has a lot to take in that he didn't expect."

"That's a good thing, right?" Kushina asked.

"No, Kushina-chan. It's not a good thing. The village is in a very bad place right now and a lot is being asked of all of the Chuunin and Jōnin. Being the youngest of that group means he has a lot of pressure and he deals with it in his own unique way."

"He's not going to go crazy like I did, right?"

"You are crazy but—"

"That's not funny, Minato."

"You're crazy, but you're you so you're not, just like Nii-san says. He's not going to go crazy because Nii-san will still be Nii-san!"

The Hokage chuckled softly, but didn't correct him.

They fell silent and I took a knee before I fell. It wasn't the pressure that was bothering me. Once the full impact of exactly how bad off we were in this war sunk in more and the blood pounding in my head faded, I returned.

"I need an answer soon, Uzumaki-kun. If you remain here, there is a lot that needs to be done before I leave."

"If I stay, how long will it be?"

"It could be a week, it will most likely be several months, it could be several years but that is highly unlikely. I need your answer, Uzumaki-kun."

If I had an even choice between the two options, I knew I would much prefer healing on a battlefield than taking responsibility no one in their right mind would give me if I was my mental age, much less appearing as a pre-pubescent child.

"Why?"

"I beg your pardon?"

"Why me? Nearly all of the forces are older and have more experience."

"Understand that I'm not condoning your actions and words by saying this but besides you, only my peers ever question my orders or even question authority in general. With the arrival of the Daimyō and the pressure of the civilian leadership, the only people I know won't cater to their whims or abuse their power are so desperately needed in the fighting they cannot be sent back here, nor can I leave those who remain with standing orders because decisions need to be made and establishing a communication line is utterly foolish."

"So you're giving someone with a mistrust of authority and an insubordination record command over the whole village."

"I need an answer."

I said nothing.

"Most would treat my offer as an opportunity."

"Mistrust of authority," I repeated. "And I have nothing to prove."

"I still need your answer."

"I don't know! Okay?" I threw my hands in the air and started pacing. "I don't want to go back to the front lines; I can't look at someone and let them die without doing something; strangers aren't worth my time or sacrifice; they don't have a raindrop's chance in hell otherwise! I can't remember the last meal I had; _they_ died because I couldn't get my shit together—"

"Uzumaki-kun!" The Hokage barked sharply, sounding suspiciously like a drill sergeant. I briefly straightened and turned towards him. "I don't care about the past, I need to know about now."

The desire to run intensified. "I'm not a leader, I'm not a fighter—I just do what I'm supposed to—stop psychoanalyzing me; this is one of your elaborate plans isn't it?"

"It is, but not in the sense you're thinking; you aren't an unwitting piece of this strategy. I'm not psychoanalyzing you."

"Then what—"

"Your answer, Uzumaki-kun."

My eyes burned. "I don't know, just wherever I'm most useful, I'll get the job done, whatever it is." I turned on my heel and left, locking myself in the bathroom. I leaned over the sink, my gut feeling like someone tangled a beater in my intestines. When I glanced up at the mirror, I saw my eyes were puffy. Stupid childhood hormones. I was just frustrated, not upset. I was angry and overwhelmed, not sad. I wasn't a child, I had no right to cry. I turned on the cold water, hoping the shock would jolt everything into perspective.

I jumped and scraped the back of my hand on the faucet as someone knocked on the door.

"Screw it all!" I hissed as a trickle of blood swirled down the drain. "Who is it? What do you want?" I demanded.

"It's me," the Hokage said softly as I turned off the water, releasing a bit of chakra through the door for identification. I responded automatically in kind. "Come to the Academy auditorium at 1700 hours in full uniform, including your haori." It was more than enough time to get ready and walk there.

"I'll be there," I responded.

There was a moment of silence and I could feel the Hokage just standing there. "Are you alright?" He finally asked.

I bit back the angry, sarcastic response I wanted to give and settled for a cold dismissal as I watched the blood drip into the sink. "You've said your piece. Please leave."

He hesitated, but still left without another word.

Without paying attention, I cleaned and healed the cut with a small burst of chakra, then splashed my face with water. When my face finally looked mostly normal, I pulled my mission bag out from beneath the sink and changed into my uniform. I donned my weapons as I exited the bathroom. Minato and Kushina stood directly outside the door, looking up at me like they wanted something.

"What do you want?" I asked warily, attaching the holster for my sticks to the small of my back.

"We want to try for reinstatement," Minato said firmly.

"Okay, sure."

"Can you take us to the hospital before you meet with the Hokage?" Kushina prompted when I just stood there, attaching my kunai pouch filled with senbon to my thigh.

I shrugged. "Okay, um, what prompted this?" I attached my medic pouch to my belt.

"We want to help."

"Oh, okay then. Go get ready," I told them, pulling on my haori.

The two beamed and scampered off. By the time I finished pulling on my sandals, they were both ready and waiting. I fished my sealing kit out of my bag and added it to my medic pouch before standing up, ready to leave, bag left behind. I didn't think they'd pass the requirements, but there was no harm in letting them try.

The two bounced ahead of me, down the dreary street. Conversations automatically turned to whispers as I strode past. I hadn't determined exactly why the civilians quieted at my appearance, but they didn't seem hostile, so I didn't exactly care. It might have been the fact my Jinchuuriki status wasn't a secret, though not public, or it might have been the distinctive haori, or it might even have been that Chuunin under the age of fifteen rarely appeared in uniform and Genin generally appeared as civilians at first glance.

At least there wasn't the hero worship I remembered from a few months before, though it was strange not to see children running around on the streets at this time of day.

I stared straight ahead and stuck my hands in my pockets, appearing perfectly relaxed, even when Kushina jumped on my back for an impromptu piggy-back ride. I dropped them off at the hospital and headed straight to the Academy.

"I didn't expect you to show up," the Hokage said from the raised platform as I opened the auditorium door. He leaned over a table cluttered with documents and didn't bother to look up at me.

"What did you expect?" I asked, slightly curious as he waved me forward.

"I thought you would run, choose the life of a missing-nin."

That was a disturbing thought. I didn't bother to answer as I jumped up onto the platform and surveyed the table of personnel files. "If you thought I would run then why—"

"That doesn't matter. In forty minutes, all the active ninja in the village will be here for a briefing, save those currently on guard. You need to be caught up on all of their assignments as well as functionally aware of everything you will be dealing with in my absence."

I suppressed a smart-ass response about the impossibility of that endeavor.

"There are three squads of twenty-two Genin maintaining a village perimeter at any given time. Of that force, there are ten others who randomly rotate in or act as replacements. The schedule for the next three months is here." He walked over to the podium and carried it closer before placing a large, fat scroll inside of it. "This is fairly straightforward and besides handing out the orders shortly before every shift, it should run smoothly. If the schedule nears its end, make a new one and be sure that no one has a double shift, the Genin don't have enough experience for it. Three ANBU will remain here and, at all times, one will be monitoring your decisions and remain available should you need help. Please utilize the assistance and advice they can offer. They have their own orders and will be carrying them out." He motioned behind him. Three ANBU materialized behind him. "This is Boar, Rat, and Bird. Memorize their masks and chakra signature."

My eyes flickered up to them. Two were probably teenagers considering the entire standing defense force seemed to be far too young to be wise, though I couldn't tell whether they were male or female. The third, Rat, was clearly an adult. I closed my eyes in concentration to detect and make note of their chakra signatures. "Got it," I murmured and by the time my eyes reopened, all three had vanished beyond my ability to detect without the Kyuubi's help.

"Sometime in the next week, the Fire Daimyō will be returning to the village itself. Please be at the gate to meet him in my stead. You can count on the fact that he will be patronizing and disrespectful. Be polite and respectful in return. I cannot express how important it is that you remain civil, none of your sassiness, sarcasm, snark, and satire in making your point."

I snorted at the alliteration.

"Please remain mature. The Daimyō is going to try and take control and it's his right to control the civilians and demand information, but under no circumstances are you to hand over authority of or information about the shinobi forces I'm giving you, as paltry as they are. If he wants protection, he can follow you around the village. Give this scroll here to him." He held up a thin, official-looking message scroll and placed it beside the fat one. "It tells him who you are and what your orders are, including the fact that you are to disregard any orders he attempts to give concerning my shinobi. Do you have questions so far?"

"This is going to sound really immature but do I have to let some stuck-up noble follow me around?"

"If he wants to, yes."

I opened my mouth to protest, but closed it when the Hokage glared at me.

"You will be mature about this arrangement." He launched into a description of the Daimyō's habits, preferences, and brief history that didn't make it into the history books. It was information I could, and would, have gathered on my own with a little experience. "Any other questions?"

"No, sir."

"Next, alongside the Genin and ANBU, there are four other Chuunin in the village. Unless the village comes under attack, you should only have contact with one of them. Three are maintaining the Torture and Interrogation Department and one is dealing with the Intelligence Department, as well as Communications. This is who you will be working with. You'll get along with her. She's quite eccentric and, like you, has an intense mistrust of all but a select few in authority. Messages and information will go through her and she'll pass on relevant information to you as well as leave you to formulate responses to it. Messages from me and Danzō will be sent directly to you." He continued on to thoroughly explain the communication system, which I determined to be far more complicated than was strictly necessary.

Halfway through, I felt the beginning of a migraine forming in the back of my head, like sitting through a lecture that dragged on for far too long. At least I could take notes during a lecture and review them later if I forgot something. If the system could have been written down, the Hokage would have handed me a scroll to read later. I tried to subtly rub my neck, but the Hokage picked up on it in an instant.

"Are you alright?" He asked suddenly.

"If I was, you wouldn't be asking," I responded, instantly defensive.

"I know you think I'm a one of the worst people alive, but it doesn't mean I don't care about your well-being."

My teeth clacked together as I suppressed a biting response. It was like he was trying to antagonize me. I massaged a knot in my neck. "There is eleven minutes until the meeting is scheduled to begin," I reminded him.

He gave me one of those parent looks that said he knew exactly what I was doing and disapproved. He quickly finished the explanation and moved on. "I can't key you into the seals around my office on this short of notice, but you're perfectly capable of creating security seals wherever you choose to set up your central command. I would suggest finding an entirely new place for safety. If you want, you can use the Academy since school has been suspended, but I don't recommend being so far away from the village walls considering the limited speed of Genin. You know, or at least you should know, the hospital procedures. I only want you dealing with shinobi and their collateral, you don't have enough energy to help every unfortunate civilian you cross."

I was about to protest that I could do whatever I liked when something in his tone sounded strange. "What are you talking about?" I asked warily.

"Don't play dumb with me, I know about how you mess with the civilian doctors and I've received dozens of complaints about it. I never said anything, because it isn't malicious, but you need to conserve your energy in case of emergencies—"

"I have the Kyuubi—"

"The Kyuubi is not a cure-all, Uzumaki-kun. The entire village, including the civilians, can sense you when you access its chakra outside of my office or the underground room you're familiar with."

"So?"

The Hokage studied me. "You are not trained in sensing, are you?"

"I can sense, just not very well. If I use the Kyuubi—"

"It multiplies that ability as well as allows you to sense negative emotion, yes, Mito-sama told me about that trait. My point is that you don't seem to understand just how potent the Kyuubi's chakra is."

I shifted awkwardly. "It doesn't hurt anyone—unless they touch it."

He sighed. "Let me put it this way, do you remember the first time you came in contact with the Kyuubi's chakra?"

Frowning, I thought back. "What does that have to do with anything?"

"What was it like?"

I hoped that was a rhetorical question. I tended to do my very best to just avoid the memory of the sealing. The fact that I felt all-around awful dulled the actual experience, but it was worse in hindsight. I remembered how toxic the chakra was and how it burned through my body seeking an escape from the seal. It had raged and burned and I couldn't get away—

"You remember the sealing, don't you? And are you aware of how dense the Kyuubi's chakra is and how much you're containing?"

He had a point, but it's not like I would ever admit it. I had been used to Ninjutsu fights with Sakumo that would saturate the air around the training ground with chakra. It was probably why I never lost consciousness during the sealing. Anyone without that kind of tolerance would be extremely susceptible.

"Both you and your sister had above-average chakra levels when you arrived here, even though she had quite a bit more, which was one of the reasons she was our first choice as Jinchuuriki. By normal standards, you shouldn't have been able to master the control necessary in order to become a medic, in fact, you were meant to become a Ninjutsu specialist, which is why I assigned Hatake-san as your sensei."

"So you weren't only manipulating my head, but my abilities as well."

"Every academy student is assessed physically and mentally then placed with Jōnin who best suit their skill set. You were just placed early."

"Sakumo didn't teach me Ninjutsu for over a year."

"For the first few months, it was the plan to wait until you dropped out of the medic program of your own free will, but obviously it didn't work, especially when you showed incredible talent, perhaps instinct, in diagnosis and developing effective solutions."

I was technically cheating with general knowledge from my world. The Hokage's decision to send me, a very, very fresh Genin, on a B-rank for my first mission suddenly made a bit more sense.

"Solutions that were not taught and you shouldn't have known, such as how to make a proper splint at age seven, even though, according to your sister, you had never even met someone with a broken bone, or if you had, you weren't old enough to remember how to treat it."

Or, you know, was a boy scout. I shrugged. "It made sense. The girl's arm was crooked, so it was obviously broken and wasn't supposed to be like that so I put something to make sure it wouldn't bend anymore. It was common sense."

"I suppose it's also common sense that in the body there is not only a system of pathways for blood, another for chakra, and third, previously unknown, system of fluid that specifically fights poisons."

"Yes," I stated sarcastically. My forehead burned a little at the near-lie, but I ignored it.

The Hokage hummed. "And I suppose the existence of a secret military in the village, whom you've had no contact with, officially or unofficially, was common sense as well."

"I didn't think it actually existed," I muttered.

"But you still knew about it. How?"

I chewed on my bottom lip and looked up at the ceiling, trying to come up with a suitable response.

"I want you to think about your answer to that while I'm gone. For now, I need to know any and all information you have pertaining to this war."

"I don't have any."

I didn't even see the Sandaime move. One second, he was on the other side of the table and in the next instant, the air was so thick with killing intent I could barely breathe, much less move. Not that I would dare move. He stood behind me with a fistful of my hair and a paper-thin blade in my neck between my artery and trachea. Any movement would sever one or the other. If I waited too long, the pulse of blood would saw through the artery.

Reflexively, I started to reach for the blade, but his hand tightened in my hair. I closed my eyes, trembling like the ribbons people tied to the grates of fans.

Before I properly registered the situation, the Sandaime released me, the killing intent fading. As soon as he released me, I sank to my knees and pressed a hand against my throat, a thin line of blood dribbling down. Belatedly, I realized I was crying as well. I wiped my face and smoothed my hair, struggling to regain my composure. I tried to heal my neck, but my hands shook too violently and my chakra was still out of control.

There was a loud crash and I jolted backwards at the table tipped precariously. The Sandaime had kicked a leg of the table off and it crashed against the wall sixty feet away. I scrambled backwards so the papers didn't fall on top of me. It didn't take me long to calm down and climb back to my feet.

"What the hell was that all about?" I snapped.

"Danzō has been working with someone and before he returns, I need to figure out who it is."

"And you thought it was me?" I asked, incredulous.

"There was a significant chance."

"You could have just asked. What subterfuge is next?"

"You're just a Chuunin, Uzumaki-kun, and you already know much more than you should. You're too smart for your own good."

Scowling, I retorted, "Fine, but almost every time I've been given a direct plan without a corresponding mission, it's been a front for something else. How do I know you're screwing with my head again?"

The Sandaime pulled a mission scroll out of his pocket and handed it to me. I opened it.

(-_-)

 **WARTIME MISSION**

Team Leader: Uzumaki Kichiro 007309

Teammates: N/A

Clearance Level: 007309-Full Disclosure

Rank: A

Type: Village Services, Leadership

Mission Summary: Lead the village in the absence of the Hokage.

Duration: Indefinite

Issued by: Sarutobi Hiruzen, Sandaime Hokage

(-_-)

Underneath the Hokage's signature was a strange seal. I ignored it and focused on the first thing that caught my attention. "Full Disclosure?" I asked dubiously. "That's higher than most Jōnin."

He tapped my forehead with his knuckles even as I flinched away. "I may not trust you as a person, but I can fully trust you as a shinobi."

"I'm flattered." I rolled my eyes. "Your summary is pretty spare."

He didn't respond and almost absently, he walked over and retrieved the table leg he kicked off and propped it back underneath so the thing didn't tip. I sealed the mission scroll inside of my pocket as the Genin shinobi began to file in for the meeting. Slightly apprehensive, I kept my back to the rest of the auditorium.

"Take a seat everybody," the Hokage called out to them. They started to take seats. "Do you have any questions so far?" He addressed me.

"Not as of yet."

"Right." He picked up the scrolls from the podium and handed them to me. I took them and slipped them into the pouch on my back. "These meetings are scheduled ten minutes before each shift begins and you will announce who will take the next shift at each one. This meeting is scheduled early, for obvious reasons."

The Hokage picked up the podium and brought it to the front of the raised platform. One could call it a stage, but there was no curtain. I turned around and stood at attention just off the Hokage's left shoulder. Technically, there were only procedures for standing at funerals and before the Daimyō but I still stood with my feet together and my hands at my sides, just like I was taught in the Army. Old habits die hard. Without further ado, the Hokage began the meeting.

* * *

Author's note: Everyone, sate my curiosity and leave a review! Even if it's just an anonymous winky face. I'm curious to see how many people finish the chapter.

Also, this is about the point in the story where my writing friends stopped giving feedback and therefore I have a question for you. What do you think?


	22. Chapter 22

"Good evening, everyone. Thank you for arriving _on time_ ," the Hokage greeted pointedly as a team of three walked in just as he started speaking. They had the decency to look apologetic. "I'm sure you've all heard the rumors of how the war is going. I hope you've noticed that ninety-five percent of the shinobi, and kunoichi, in the village are Genin. I'm here to clarify as much as possible. I will be perfectly straight with you. There is a significant chance that Konoha will lose this war."

Mutterings erupted.

"But we beat Suna and Kumo!" Someone shouted out.

"Yes, we defeated them, but at great cost to ourselves."

"Konoha is stronger than any other village!" A particularly young kunoichi leapt to her feet and shouted above the din.

Agreement echoed around the hall. The Hokage raised a hand for silence.

"We also have a decent chance at winning this war, but that will never happen without your full cooperation. While all of you are not on the war front, you play a very important role: protecting this village and making sure that the Will of Fire burns brightly, fueling those in every role of this village!"

Deafening cheers answered him. He was a good orator, but nothing like Ronald Reagan, Winston Churchill, or Martin Luther King Jr. Frankly, with the 'Will of Fire' propaganda, I couldn't help but subconsciously parallel him with the early pre-Holocaust Hitler. I quickly squashed that thought before I started scowling and noticing more similarities.

"You're not the only shinobi of this village, and right now, others need my personal help more than you."

The room went dead silent. I surveyed the heads of those assembled. Over three-quarters of those assembled were younger than fifteen. Those closer to adulthood looked horrified at the announcement. The younger groups were just confused and apprehensive.

"In my absence, I will be placing Uzumaki Kichiro in charge."

"He's just a little kid!" One teenager exclaimed, outraged.

I was about to respond when I thought better of it.

"He's one of our best medics," the Hokage responded. "And is the most qualified person in this village."

"He's the Spirit!" The kunoichi from before shouted at the teenager. The teen could probably have squashed her under his little finger. "He can fix anything!"

What?

The room exploded in arguments. "Silence!" The Hokage roared. "You are all shinobi of the Leaf! I expect you to act like it!"

They quieted.

"Thank you. Now, Uzumaki-kun has been briefed on his responsibilities and I have given him absolute authority until my return. To subvert him is the equivalent of directly disobeying me and you will be disciplined accordingly. Am I clear?" When everyone had grudgingly acknowledged the order, he continued. "Thank you. Are there any questions for me?"

"How long will you be gone?"

"Indefinitely. Anyone else?" No one spoke up. "Uzumaki-kun, introduce yourself."

I took a step forward and did my best to project my voice throughout the entire room. "Hi, you already know my name, so just call me Kichiro. Just do your job and I'll do mine and we won't have a problem. Any questions?"

"Are you related to the Shodai's wife?" Someone from the back asked.

"Not the question I was expecting, but yes, I am, though I'm not sure how closely. Next."

"Is it true you can heal any poison?"

"No, some poisons act too quickly to be countered."

"Did you raise people from the dead in Iwa?"

"What? No way, that's just asking for trouble."

"So you can raise people from the dead?"

"Where are these questions coming from?"

"Can you?"

Well, I technically could, the Nidaime's Edo Tensei was in the Uzumaki library and out of curiosity, I had looked at it and could most likely perform it, but I sure as hell wouldn't try or even admit to it. "Different question, please."

"Are you the Kyuubi?" One of the Chuunin leaning against the wall asked.

"No, do I look like a giant fox with more tails than should be possible?"

"That's what the Kyuubi would say!" One of the younger Genin exclaimed.

"Actually, the Kyuubi would've killed you for asking in the first place."

More than a few people flinched back at the comment.

 ** _I would have killed the whole lot of them before they even said a word, just for being pathetic weaklings._**

 _You need to be nicer. Some people can't help being weak and a good majority of them are children._

 ** _You're a child, and you could wipe the floor with all of them._**

 _I have superior resources at my disposal._ "Are there any other questions?"

"What happens if we think you're making a bad decision?" Someone in the front row asked. By the boy's pale eyes, he was obviously a Hyuuga and couldn't have been older than seven.

"Finally, a relevant question! If you disagree, politely tell me why and I will take your point of view into consideration." Considering Sakumo put up with my backtalk, it was only fair that I put up with theirs. "Any more questions?"

When no one spoke, the Hokage filled the silence.

"Good job, Uzumaki-kun," he murmured, just loud enough for me to hear before turning to the rest of the room. "If that is all, I will be leaving now. Uzumaki-kun will take over from here."

He vanished dramatically.

"Who's up next for village guard?" Someone asked from the center of the room. I pulled the schedule out of my pouch.

"Group two," I announced and replaced the scroll. "There is an abandoned building on the main street about four blocks into the village generally used for Jōnin assassination training. Once I disable the traps, you'll report there. Any questions?"

"How do you know about a Jōnin training site?"

I shifted, slightly uncomfortable. "I was trying to figure out where my sensei lived and he accidentally led me into the middle of an ANBU practice operation." I could feel the reevaluation of my skill level. "Are there any objections?"

"How do we know you're not asking us to walk into a death trap?"

"If it is, you'll find my dead body in the morning." I rolled my eyes. "If that's all, group two needs to leave for their shift."

"Wait!" Someone burst through the doors as everyone began to stand up. "The Daimyō is about to reach the village gates!"

The Hokage's abrupt departure suddenly made more sense. "I'll take care of it. Everyone should have an idea of what they're supposed to be doing."

I literally bounced off the walls to get to the door and swung out in an acrobatic swing that would have even the best stunt artists and circus performers green with envy. As soon as I was clear, I attempted a Shunshin that landed me just shy of a block away from the main gate. I raced over the rooftops and leapt down, just as the Daimyō and his modest entourage reached the village gates. I shifted my forehead protector nervously to make sure it fully covered the seal on my forehead before marching up to the gates where a flustered Genin was staring at the papers he had been handed. The Daimyō slowly stepped out of the carriage he rode in.

The entourage marched into the village as the Genin handed the papers back and waved them inside the village.

"Where's your Hokage?" He demanded loudly as the Genin started to gather to stare.

"He has left to fight. I am currently the shinobi in charge here," I said firmly.

He focused on me. "I don't appreciate games, little boy. Where is your Hokage?"

"With all due respect, Daimyō-sama, Sandaime-sama is on his way to fight. I assure you, I am in charge. My comrades here will back up my claim." I reached into my pouch and pulled out the scroll I was instructed to give him. "I was instructed to give you this."

I took a step forward and the three guards, who looked to have samurai training blocked my path when the Daimyō inclined his head. One held out a hand for the scroll. I raised an eyebrow at them before leaping up and flipping over them to hand the scroll directly to the Daimyō. Normally, I wouldn't have had any problem with letting them pass on the scroll, but if I was understanding the seal, it would set off a nasty Genjutsu if opened by anyone else. I figured protecting the Daimyō from his own idiocy was part of the 'be nice' order.

He looked down his nose at me and took the scroll, opening it warily. "What's your name, boy?"

"Uzumaki Kichiro."

His nose crinkled in disgust. "You and your clan are better off dead."

One eavesdropping Academy student loudly protested that statement with plenty of unflattering adjectives. Then lunged for the Daimyō. I intercepted him with depressing ease, he was at least three years younger than me. "Say that to my face, old coot! My grandmother was an Uzumaki and she was the best person ever! Say it again and I'll—" I clamped a hand over his mouth.

"Nawaki-san, please calm down," I requested politely. He tried once to jerk out of my grip before going still and licking my hand. It was a disturbing sensation, but I didn't release him. I bent down and murmured in his ear. "Thank you. I'm sure the hospital could use some help and it would make your sister very proud that you went to help out in your free time. I promise I won't tell anyone I suggested it, okay?"

He tried to bite down on my fingers. I dug my fingers in his wrist hard enough that his eyes started to water.

"I'm not asking. That's the Daimyō you're threatening and if you don't do as I say this instant, he can order your execution and both you and I will be in serious trouble, because I'll be forced to defend you and defy him. You are the Senju heir, act like it. Leave now and do not look back."

I released him and after sending the Daimyō a dirty look, Nawaki stomped off.

"Where are you going, boy? You have yet to face your punishment for your disrespect!"

The Genin watching as well the rest of the Academy students watching closed ranks behind me. "Daimyō-sama, I advise you to read the message from Hokage-sama before you continue towards your current goal."

With a glare, he ripped open the scroll and his scowl grew progressively harsher as he continued reading. At the end, he rolled it up with more dignity than I expected him to manage. "I need to talk to you in private about the operations of this village, boy."

I nodded once and turned to the Genin behind me who were decidedly not happy with the Daimyō and several crossed their arms angrily when they realized I was about to order them off. I was touched that they thought I was worth defending, but at the same time, I was a little insulted that they thought I needed it. "Those of you in the Academy, I'm sure you can find tasks to do for your parents or clan. Orphans, the hospital always has need of people to do some heavy lifting. You have no excuse for goofing off while the Chuunin teachers are fighting. Genin, I know some of you should be on shift, and those who just got off should head home for some rest. Those of you without tasks can head to their Genin training grounds and practice their chakra control. I am not asking, I am ordering."

For a long minute, I thought they would refuse, but they scattered.

"This way, Daimyō-sama, the Academy has an empty room we can use."

He tried to lead the way instead. If I was anyone else, or if I appeared older, I would have taken offense to that, but I quite enjoyed sticking him and his cronies with a Genjutsu that made them think they were leading, while in reality, I was walking ahead of them and periodically waiting for them to catch up.

Slowly, I released the Genjutsu as we entered the Academy and pointed out a suitable classroom. An utterly plain-looking Chuunin took up a position just off my left shoulder, shadowing my steps as everyone filed in and I sealed the room from listeners with one of Kushina's seals. I checked his chakra signature and recognized him as one of the ANBU, Rat.

"This is nothing more than a schoolroom!" The Daimyō scoffed.

"Unfortunately, I do not have access to the Hokage's office, nor have I made my own just yet."

"What are the status of your troops?"

"Fit."

"Don't play games with me, boy, how many shinobi are in this village?"

"That is not information I am allowed to give."

"Where has the Hokage gone?"

"To fight."

"You fool!" He roared at me. "To what location is the Hokage going to fight at?"

"That is not information I am allowed to give."

"You are incompetent."

"With all due respect, sir, I have a higher clearance level than you in matters pertaining to this military. I do not withhold information out of spite, but in order to maintain competition with the other nations."

"I am the leader of this land; I order you to tell me what I want to know."

"In the interest of preserving your leadership, I have to deny your request and remind you that you and your guards are civilians thus your ability to protect information is severely limited."

"You, kill him," the Daimyō ordered the disguised ANBU standing behind me. He slowly reached into the pouch on his hip and I struggled to remain relaxed. He pulled out a brand-new Bingo Book and flipped through the pages until he landed on mine, then held it out for the Daimyō to see.

"This is the person you are ordering the death of."

The Daimyō paled. I held back a frown. My entry couldn't have been that impressive. Rat pulled it back and flashed me the entry. I was wanted alive by all the nations with Bijū and several without. I was now considered a B-rank threat, even though my only known abilities were unknown mastery of Uzumaki Fūinjutsu and complete mastery of Iryo-Ninjutsu. I had an impressive list of known associates. The bounty was quite small in comparison to Sakumo or Dan, but it was still a sum worth taking note.

"You're the Spirit of the Triage?"

"Yes."

"You're the best medic in the five nations."

"There's really no way to determine that. Now, I have work I need to do as well as family to take care of, so unless there's anything else, I'll take my leave."

"You are far too young for this to be true."

"In the shinobi world, age is a hallmark of experience, not skill or strength." I turned my back on the Daimyō and stared out the window, outside of which three Academy students trained. One was repeating katas and the other two were engaged in the shinobi version of tag with dulled kunai, moving at speeds civilians would have a hard time tracking.

"Who's your teacher?"

"Hatake Sakumo, Konoha's White Fang."

"And the Hokage left you in charge of this village even though you are a child."

"I have the intelligence and maturity to lead. Unless the civilian sect of this village crosses my leadership, they will operate independently and you can take complete control, if you wish. My focus is on taking care of the people directly under my jurisdiction, no more, no less."

I could feel the Daimyō's eyes on my back and wished I was dealing with regular people-pleasing politicians, not power-hungry, wannabe dictators.

"As long as you don't interfere, we can avoid each other completely, is that agreeable to you?"

He contemplated the offer. "What about my protection?"

"I can assign you two Genin, you can trail after me while I do my job, or I can use Fūinjutsu to create a room no one can enter without authorization."

"Fūinjutsu."

"Very well, notify me when you have chosen the quarters you wish to sleep in, and I will place the seals. Will that be all?"

"Yes."

I turned to leave, but stopped in the doorway. "The Uzumaki clan now resides in Konoha," I told him pleasantly. "There are seven children being raised in the clan house and if you touch them or their caretakers, directly or not, your life is forfeit, it doesn't matter who you are." I marched out without looking back.

Rat followed me. When the door closed, a boy slightly older than me raced out of his hiding spot as the Henge faded to reveal one of the ANBU. I quickly confirmed the chakra signature before the boy raced off after a few murmured words.

"Good job, kid, you did better than expected in there," Rat, told me then disappeared.

I rolled my eyes and marched out of the building, took to the rooftops, and landed in front of the hospital. Minato sat in a corner of the waiting room, tossing a kunai up in the air and catching it by the ring of the handle. I stayed just outside of Minato's sensing range as I slid behind the receptionist's desk where a harried civilian woman appeared close to tears as she tried to decipher the code of the Chuunin who normally manned the desk.

"You don't have to worry about that log, it's in shinobi code and it logs Jōnin and ANBU injuries. I'm taking care of all of that already." I closed the log and climbed up to the top shelf of the records and stuck it on top.

"Thank Kami, I thought I was going insane!"

"Just take care of the stuff you were taught—"

"I wasn't taught anything!" She all but wailed. "They just told me to take care of this desk and I'm just a trainee nurse, I don't know all of this record stuff, I don't even know how to pull files!"

"Hey, it's fine, all you have to do is write down the names of the injured on this log here, the sick on this one, and the appointments on this one."

"Thank you, shinobi-san!" She gushed.

"You're welcome. The files are organized just like the library. Give it a few days and you'll have it down to pat." I shuffled back to the massive wall of files and fingered through until I found Minato's. Mentally, he was declared clear, which was more than I expected, but the standards were extremely low. He was still injured, so he was restricted to light duty.

"You look a little young to be a doctor, shinobi-san."

"I'm not, I'm a medic-nin."

"You look like a Genin."

I turned around and tapped my vest. "Chuunin." I turned back to the wall to replace Minato's file.

"Does the haori mean something? I've never seen the other medic-nin wear it."

"It makes the enemy nin think twice about attacking me."

"You're just a little kid!"

"In the shinobi world, age is a hallmark of experience, not skill," I repeated.

"You're not very talkative."

"I'm actually in charge while the Hokage's gone, so I'm quite busy. I don't mean to be rude but I have work to do and I can't stop and chat."

I escaped out before she could say anything more and hurried towards the interview room where I figured Kushina would be testing.

I crept into the observation room. She sat in one of the metal chairs, fidgeting with her shoe, and answering the doctor's questions.

She never made eye contact with the doctor. I couldn't hear the questions, but Kushina never seemed to get upset, so I figured everything was mostly okay. After a few minutes of watching, I left and went back to the waiting room, letting Minato pick up on my chakra signature. He brightened and waved at me as I opened the door to the rest of the hospital. I motioned him over, just as Kushina skipped down the hall.

"I passed!" She cheered and slammed into me with a violent hug. "I'm clear for full duty!" I didn't expect that, but I guessed it was a pleasant surprise.

"Good for you, Kushina, any restrictions?"

"None!" She chirped.

"Okay, Minato?" I knew the answer, but I was curious to see if he would share.

"I'm cleared, but still injured," he murmured, staring at my feet.

"Okay. At 0150 there's a meeting in the Academy auditorium, I'll figure out what you'll do then. Get some rest and I'll meet you then, okay?"

Kushina pulled Minato into the hug. In my old world, I wasn't the most touchy-feely person, but after the last week of spending almost every waking hour with two orphans starved for attention, I had no choice in the matter, especially when they both initiated random hug sessions whether I consented or not. I noted that the society was quite devoid of physical contact. I had never been a proponent of 'hugs fix everything' but I was sure they could help a lot more than I originally thought.

"Guys, I have work to do."

"You really are in charge, aren't you, Nii-san?" Minato asked.

"Yes, I am."

"We didn't eat dinner," Kushina mumbled.

"I'm sure there's still one or two shops open."

"Will you come?"

"Sorry, Kushina, I really have to go—"

"Do what?" Minato challenged.

"I have to clear a house of traps and set up a headquarters."

"Where?"

"Minato—" I warned.

"Where?" Kushina echoed. Both of them tightened their grip on me.

"Someplace too dangerous for the two of you. I'll see you at the meeting." I detached myself from them and marched out, feeling like a bit of a jerk.

* * *

Author's note: Thank you so much for all the feedback! Keep it coming!


	23. Chapter 23

I resigned myself to no sleep for the night as I poured over the files on all the Genin the Hokage had left me. It was the Hokage's version of each and every Genin stationed in the village. When I returned to the auditorium after three hours of clearing the house I was planning for my base of operations, the ANBU dropped a note scolding me for leaving sensitive documents in the open. Luckily, that same ANBU has stayed to watch the room. I started with the dozen Genin that were not placed with a specific group before moving on to the group about to head on duty. While I organized the papers for better access, I found several stacks of paper with common, Genin-level tasks that periodically needed done. Towards beneath those stacks were other, smaller stacks of tasks that were a bit above Genin level, but still needed to be done. The logistics required was a complete nightmare and my feet ached from standing.

As the Genin started to file in, I made note of where I stopped and what I needed to say for the meeting. Thankfully, they were all mostly awake. Shinobi technically weren't supposed to keep any kind of schedule and they seemed to be doing a decent job of it.

At 0150, I turned around to face them. "Group one is on shift." I proceeded to list three exchanges between the Genin without a group and those with. "The three temporarily moved out of group one, you're helping me carry all these papers to a more secure location. Namikaze Minato and Uzumaki Kushina, I want you to put security seals around the location, full strength. Does anyone else have knowledge of advanced Fūinjutsu?" No one raised their hands so I moved on. "The enrollment list of Academy students is pinned on that wall," I pointed at the wall I pinned the list to. "Group three and those who do not have an assigned task, I want you to pick two or three names off the list, initial beside them, and bring the Academy students here at 0900. Any questions?"

"Who are you? Where's the Hokage?"

"I'm Uzumaki Kichiro and the Hokage has left to fight, I'm in charge, and unless I say so, you only answer to me. Clear?"

"Clear," several people echoed.

"What happens if we can't find the students?"

"You're Genin, it shouldn't be a problem to find a few children in your own village, so get it done, you have six hours."

"But—"

"No buts. Any other questions?"

"How old are you?"

"Nine. Any relevant questions concerning orders or operations?"

"Did the Daimyō really threaten you and your clan?"

"The Daimyō has removed himself from the shinobi hierarchy of this village and the contents of my conversation with him are confidential."

"Section A of the Shinobi—"

"I know what Section A says about threats made to superior officers. The situation has been resolved and the contents have been declared confidential."

"What does Section A say?"

"The Shinobi Code of Conduct can be found on the first shelf of the public records building or available through any Academy student. Group one, you have four minutes to report to the village wall. Those who are helping me, come on the platform, everyone else, you know your jobs. Those of you picking up Academy students, please wait until morning to contact them."

It only took five minutes and two scuffles for the Academy names to be chosen and the Genin to file out. During that time, I stacked the papers into three manageable piles and loaded up my impromptu pack mules.

"Are you ready?" I asked. They nodded and we set off. On the way there, my two dear little siblings did an impressive job of leading like overly-proud peacocks, not that I had ever heard of a peacock here and could tell them so. I supposed they wanted to show off how competent they were, especially since I had kicked Minato's ass so soundly two months before and they'd been emotional, and possibly hormonal, wreaks ever since.

In the main room of the house I chose for headquarters, old, if serviceable couches had been pushed up against the walls. Before I left after clearing the place of dangerous traps, I had dragged a solid, wood table in from the dining room, as well as the chairs. My pack-mule Genin dumped the papers on the table and left as fast as they could. I didn't stop them.

"Minato, Kushina, I need this room sealed so that no one can get inside without my permission. Around the house, you don't need seals that intense, but I still don't want anyone to have access without my knowledge. Make sure the ceiling and floor are covered as well and the roof is reinforced. Any questions?"

They looked a bit disappointed as they shook their heads. "I thought you wanted us to make cool seals," Minato complained. "We can do this with regular seals." Leave it to the two seal freaks to consider security seals on par with the ones around the Hokage's office to be mundane. Yet, it made sense. The little bit I had been able to learn about other sealing styles indicated that they needed several seals to accomplish what one Uzumaki seal could do, which was one of the reasons the other villages' Jinchuuriki seals ended up significantly weaker than the Uzumaki seals. Minato and Kushina had learned the Uzumaki style, so they got about half the entertainment out of seal requests than a normal seal master would receive. Not that either of them had the discipline to become true masters. They were too easily distracted by more interesting seals and had no one to make them muddle through the nuances of the art.

"You're welcome to try and figure out something better on your own time, but I need this place secured quickly so I can try and get a little bit of rest tonight."

They scurried out while I pulled up a chair to continue going through the files. I sent a quick thanks to Sakumo for drilling me until I developed a near-photographic memory. I could absorb a lot of knowledge at once, even though my comprehension was almost nonexistent. It was perfect for memorizing profiles.

Twenty minutes later, Minato and Kushina returned, their arms filled with paper.

"You need to activate the seals," Minato said as they started to plaster them on the walls. I complied and in short order, the room was almost perfectly secure. It would take a Kage to get through them without blasting the place to smithereens. A few minutes later, the repurposed training ground had basic security keyed directly to me.

I sent the Genin to rest, avoiding promises to do the same. Even though I had technically only been a leader for less than seven hours, I hated it more than anything else. Not that it was particularly hard work, but because I didn't know the people I was leading well enough to be confident in my allocation of skill sets and thus, most of the responsibility to get things done would fall to me until I figured it out. Paper statistics were great, but there just wasn't a scale to judge adaptability, independence, problem-solving, and motivation. My rant to the Hokage upon his return began to compose itself in the back of my mind. I was still considered young enough to throw a temper tantrum, right? No wonder kids were so carefree, they could cry, and scream, a rage when something displeased them, and whether or not the displeasure persisted, they undoubtedly made their point known to the world, where adults had to keep it all 'politely' bottled up inside.

I finished memorizing Genin profiles shortly before sunrise, giving me a little more than two hours of rest before I had to meet with the Academy students. I stuck to the darkest of shadows and hurried to the house I had taken to calling the Uzumaki clan compound. In my opinion, it was a nice house. It was reasonably close to the hospital, any one of the young children of the clan could safely remember and make the trip if needed. The Yamanaka compound was across the street, and since a respectable portion of the clan was civilian and the shinobi were all fighting, they were welcoming of their new neighbors across the street and doted on the children.

The house itself was almost excessively large, if simple, but the ridiculous thickness of the wooden walls as well as the fact that the roof was solid wood, except for the tiles protecting it from rotting, made me suspect that it had been built by the Shodai, at least the outside had been. There were three levels and I automatically claimed the top room as shinobi-only. While the outside frame was perfectly sound, the inside was a mess. The circular staircase had been so decrepit that I had to rescue the person trying to sell the house when he stepped on it and fell through. And kept falling from the second floor to the basement, where I had caught him before he broke his neck and informed him I'd take the house while I healed the contusions.

Fusō and Ise were a bit dismayed when I proudly showed the newly-bought house to them and they took in the walls that couldn't be considered walls due to the amount of damage they somehow obtained. When I explained my plan to gut the inside of the house and rebuild the walls however they wanted, the horror turned into skepticism and they agreed that the space was good enough for the seven Uzumaki children they wanted to finish raising. The next day, I brought Minato and Kushina there and worked them to exhaustion cleaning the place up, without telling them what it was for, no matter how much they pleaded with me. Twenty-eight hours of constant work later, the house was cleared of all debris and scrubbed until it sparkled. Four rooms were built on one side of the house and fully furnished: a kitchen, dining room with a massive table, a living room with plenty of seating, and a half-bathroom with plumbing. Temporary dividers were propped against the walls to be arranged later.

In an abnormally large lean-to attached to the back of the house, there was a real onsen. The water was disgusting and the place needed to be cleaned, but I could do that easily with a weak version of the only water jutsu I knew and could heat the water with another I saw Sakumo use when he was fed up with bathing in cold water on my tour of the bases. I was sure I could wrangle it out of him the next time I saw him, or break into his house and steal the scroll since he had so helpfully boasted where it was when he thought I wasn't listening.

I returned Minato and Kushina back to Minato's apartment before going back and setting up a sturdy fence around the missing staircase to block access to the basement and upper floors until I found time to properly finish the remainder of the house. Fusō and Ise moved in with Nagato the next day, and the day after, when they had managed to set up the rest of the floor for entertaining children, the rest of the orphans moved in, thrilled at the prospect of getting out of the overcrowded orphanage and into a place they could call their home and regaining guardians they were actually related to, who cared for them because they wanted to, not because it was just their job. The hospital worked out a scheduling for Ise and Fusō that made it so one of them, and often both, would always be there while the kids weren't in school.

It took several days, but I had moved most of mine and Kushina's shinobi things from our apartment to the top floor of the house and Ise sealed it up nicely so that unless someone had Uzumaki chakra or an Uzumaki guiding them, it was practically impenetrable. I noticed him add a bit to the seal that would tie it to him and let him know when I came and went, but didn't say anything. I knew a little about paranoid and worrying parents so I indulged him. He had a decent understanding of how shinobi operated, so as long as he never told anyone the kind of information he had access to, there was no danger.

Apparently, according to Uzumaki tradition, a clan kid wasn't considered an adult, or even able to consent to anything, until they reached Jōnin or the age of twenty-five. The day before the Hokage came to visit and sign me up for leadership, I had ducked out while Kushina and Minato took an impromptu nap. The Uzumaki children were attending the civilian school two blocks away and Fusō and Ise had somehow managed to get the day to themselves. I stopped by the house to dump several weapons I had found squirreled away in Minato's apartment, blatantly breaking the 'no sharp or pointy objects allowed to the Genin' rule I imposed on the two of them.

The top floor of the Uzumaki clan house automatically became one of my favorite places in the village, even though the amount of time I spent there was negligible and there was nothing but miscellaneous weapons and odd supplies scattered across the floor. I landed on the roof, perched atop the highest point, an ornate sphere Ise insisted I place there to mark the place as Uzumaki territory and to publicly announce that the clan still lived, mostly in the faint hope that any Uzumaki who survived the massacre by being outside the village would return when word got around to the other villages that Konoha had gained a potentially powerful clan. Apparently, any Uzumaki dwelling had the symbol. Kichiro's childhood memories weren't nearly detailed or attentive enough to confirm or deny the claim. It made a good spot to stand watch.

I extended my senses to place the inhabitants of the house. Ise was the only person awake and moving. I guessed that he was making breakfast, or possibly lunches, but he might have been in the adjacent dining room fidgeting, I hadn't quite memorized the room placements. Fusō was absent, likely at the hospital on shift.

The children were sleeping in what was probably supposed to be a neat line but ended up with several children facing the wrong direction or sideways, as well as the younger ones using their elders as pillows. A divider had been set up between the boys and girls. I probably could have mixed them all up with the vicarious Kawarimi I used to mess with Sakumo, but I was too tired to enjoy the fallout of that little disruption. Minato and Kushina were there, surprisingly, but they slept on the second floor, which was probably a wise decision considering they could be called on at any time.

I silently leapt from the peak of the roof to the eaves before shimmying down the wall and stopping outside the window to the room Ise was in. After confirming it was the kitchen, I opened the window with a trick that would have earned me a position as a first-rate thief in my old world. The security seals would have given me a nasty shock if I hadn't been an Uzumaki, but a burst of chakra disabled them long enough for me to silently slide inside. Ise visibly flinched and barely stifled an alarmed shout when he turned around to see me perched atop the faucet of the sink like an abnormally large bird.

"It's Kichiro," I said softly before he could try anything with the paring knife clutched in his fist.

"Shinobi, right," he said and leaned against the counter weakly. "Could you please make a little noise when you come in? I'm not too young to have my heart stop."

"Sorry, I guess not everyone is as freaky as Sakumo to know where I am at any given moment."

"Your perspective is a bit skewed, most shinobi aren't anywhere near as good as Hatake-san. More importantly, there's talk of a temporary change in leadership of the village. Is that why you weren't at dinner like you promised? Both Kushina and Minato unexpectedly came, though they didn't know if they could talk about it. You haven't already gotten in trouble with whomever it is, have you?"

I shifted uncomfortably and leapt to the ground. "Actually, I'm technically in charge." I didn't have the energy or the patience for the discussion that would stem from that statement. "I haven't slept all night, so I only stopped by to let you know I was here."

He accepted my deflection of the conversation without complaint, ruffling my hair. "I'm sure you'll do great, kiddo."

I grunted and took off. From the sharp pull on my scalp, I probably left a few hairs tangled around his fingers.


	24. Chapter 24

I noticed more than a little hero worship among the Academy students crowded into the front rows of the auditorium. The Hokage never said anything about not being able to train the Academy students and hopefully get a few of them up to Genin level to alleviate some of the pressure on the Genin stationed in the village. They were my guinea pig group. If I could manage to continue the education of the Academy students, I could probably manage to continue the education of the Genin, thus bolstering the capabilities of the Genin force. I decided that the Genin lingering in the back of the room would be good errand boys and girls. There had to be enough retired shinobi in the village capable of teaching one or two Academy students how to fight and function as shinobi.

"The Genin lingering in the back of the room who have forgotten their lessons on the necessity of compartmentalization can all go and find as many retired shinobi as they can and request their presence here at 1000. Do not be late for your own meeting."

They all left, chastised.

"What's com-par-men-zation?" One of the Academy students asked.

"Compartmentalization is where one piece of information is given to one group and different piece of information is given to a different group so that no one has the entire chunk of information and if one group gets caught and gives up their information, then they don't put all of the other groups in danger." I hoped that was a simple enough explanation for a bunch of kids. "Now, I'd like to inform you all that your education at the Academy will continue for the time being. In your textbooks, there are suggested workout routines. You are to complete them to the best of your ability. You may choose your groups, but everyone is to have at least one partner. Any questions?"

Several hands shot into the air. I picked the closest. "What about teachers?"

"You want to be ninja, right? As a ninja, you will spend a good portion of your time training alone or with a small team, unless you are one of the very lucky ones and manage to find yourself someone to be apprenticed to." I pointed at another hand.

"Who will teach us to fight? The textbook doesn't have any jutsu!"

"That has yet to be decided. You have to keep up the workout regime first." I pointed to someone else.

"Can we practice throwing kunai?"

"Only as long as you're careful. If I hear or see anyone getting hurt, no matter the circumstances, the privilege will be taken away." I waved my hand at another.

"What if we already know some kata?"

"Then teach it to the people you are working with. No sparring."

Eventually, the questions stopped. "The Academy training grounds are open for your use. I'm not going to tell you when to do the workout, but you will do it every day. Hopefully, a teacher of some kind will be assigned to you soon. I suggest you split into groups of two or three others who are at or around your strength and skill level. If there are any problems, ask a ninja to bring you to me. Frivolity and slacking will not be tolerated. If you do not wish to be a ninja any longer, hand in your resignation to me. Dismissed."

Somehow, the questions had dragged on long enough for several Genin early to their meeting to have peeked in the door. The Academy students, thankfully, left quickly and the Genin filed in as the stragglers hurried out. When they were settled, I started the next meeting. "Group two is back on shift." I proceeded to list the two exchanges in their ranks. "Have there been any notable incidents that could possibly become relevant in the future?"

"There are a pair of bandits camping slightly less than two kilometers away from the west-northwest wall. Recommendation is that they be eliminated."

Three more people spoke up with the exact same situation.

"Has anyone confirmed that they are actually bandits and not shinobi?"

No one spoke up.

"Shit. Uzumaki, go get the barrier seals Uzu used during wartime, all of them."

"The village is too big—" Kushina protested. I cut her off.

"No, it's not, trust me. Go, now, and bring them back." She dashed out. "Raise your hand if you know bare minimum of creating seals or using anything other than explosive tags."

Minato raised his hand along with two others.

"Are you good enough to copy seals?" They nodded uncertainly. "All three of you report to me after this meeting. You're in group two, right?" They nodded and I quickly replaced them with two others from the reserves. The Genin were beginning to look a little apprehensive. "This is all just a precaution," I assured them. "Have there been any other incidents or details I should know?"

"Two civilians working in the fields failed to report back last night. No search parties have been sent out."

"Has any investigation been made?"

"The fields are too far out to send a Genin patrol unit."

"Understood. No investigations. If the civilians return, detain them and notify me immediately. As for the bandits, I want the Hyuuga twins and the Uchiha to report to me at the conclusion of this meeting. Is there anything else I need to know about?"

"The Daimyo has taken full control of the civilian sector of the village. Something he said has prompted several Academy parents to attempt to take their children out of the Academy program. I directed them to an empty classroom and said you'd meet them there in an hour?"

"Good call, thank you." There was a small knot of them in the back corner muttering with their heads together. "Is your conversation important enough to be shared?" I asked them pointedly.

They shifted uncomfortably, but one of kunoichi stood up. "Several parents of Genin have insisted that we hand in our resignation."

"Is there a particular reason why?"

She shrugged. "I think there's a smear campaign against you initiated by the Daimyō."

"There is and always has been a minor smear campaign among the civilians against the Hokage and all ninja," I informed the room. "This isn't a new problem, so I want you all to ignore it. You will walk away from confrontations, no matter what is said or done. Just because they are civilians doesn't mean they have no right to voice their opinions. If it becomes a problem at home, seek shelter at a comrade's house or clan compound." I had a good idea what the Daimyō was attempting to do, and I hoped it didn't succeed. No matter what, I had to get to the Academy students before he could. "Group three, I want you to find as many of the Academy-age shinobi-in training, especially the ones with civilian parents or staying with civilian family members, as you can and bring them to a training ground, any training ground. Teach them katas, how to throw kunai or shuriken, an E-ranked jutsu, or even spar with them if you need to, just keep them away from the civilians and keep them happy. I know it sounds extremely manipulative, but Konoha can't afford to lose any potential shinobi, not now, and these kids are going to have to step up as soon as they are able to help you out. Group three, dismissed."

They all but ran out while Kushina fought her way inside.

"Group two, I need you to pass on what happened in this meeting to group one and tell them to get as much rest as they can, dismissed. If you did not receive an order, I want you to Henge into a civilian and find out what is being said. Do not bring attention to yourself and absolutely do not let anyone know you're a ninja. Meet me at the headquarters at noon to report and receive another assignment, dismissed."

Only seven other people remained in the room. I waved them forward and sat down on the edge of the platform.

"You three," I pointed at the two Hyuuga and the Uchiha. "Can you get along for long enough to complete a mission?" Considering the Hyuuga were Hyuuga, and the Uchiha was an Uchiha, I wasn't sure of my chances.

They eyed each other warily.

"I've seen all three of your profiles, the full ones. You're all strong enough to be mid-level Chuunin right now, but your respective clans insisted that you remain in the village for several reasons, foremost among them to preserve bloodlines, correct?"

The three nodded at me, clearly not happy about the arrangements.

"Since I have far too many things to take care of right now, I need the three of you to work out some sort of camaraderie and a chain of command in the next twenty minutes before setting out to make sure the bandits are really bandits and not shinobi. Use the Byakugan to look at their chakra networks from as far away as you can. Do not engage. If you get even a whiff of a non-Konoha shinobi, high-tail it out of there and report to me without delay. Absolutely no heroics, you are to gather information only. Save for myself, the three of you are probably the strongest combat shinobi in the village right now. I need all of you to be combat-ready at all times. Dismissed."

They left as the first of the retired nin trickled in and took a seat.

I held out a hand to Kushina and she gave me a wooden tube filled with the seals I requested from her. I opened it and shuffled through the seals until I found the one I needed.

"That one isn't big or strong enough to surround the entire village!" Kushina protested. "Your best bet would be this one!"

"That one can't keep out a determined Academy student at the size it needs to be," I retorted. "This one is the strongest, and if I put enough chakra in it, I can expand it even further than it was intended."

"You don't have that much chakra to safely—"

"I'm at least twice as strong as anything you've ever seen me do, Kushina, and I have the Kyuubi as backup. Put the rest of these seals back and then I need the four of you to each make a copy of this seal, just in case. Find somewhere to work where you won't be interrupted, dismissed."

They scurried out and I turned to the retired ninja sitting on one side of the room, chatting.

"Is anyone else coming?" I asked. Several shook their heads and I noted that there were more than thirty of them.

"So, kiddo, what do you want a bunch of old crippled guys for?" One of them, who seemed to be missing half his face, asked.

"I need your help."

"We can't run patrols, gaki, and your Genin would be better off in a fight than most of us." One rolled their eyes and tapped his missing leg with a cane.

"I don't know what the Hokage was thinking when he left a bunch of toddlers as a defense." Another commented, quickly followed by a third.

"All of us retired for a damn good reason."

"I know! I know!" I insisted. "But I can't handle everything that needs to be done, the handful of Chuunin here all have their own jobs. I don't care what the Hokage thinks, less than a hundred Genin can't handle eight-hour shifts around the entire village perimeter for an indefinite period of time and assist inside the village so I want to train the Academy students to be able to step up and help out."

"In a few days, there's only going to be a dozen Academy students left, it's not worth the resources to train them. You're too late to stop the civilian paranoia. I've seen it happen in every war since the time of the Shodai," a particularly old man said. "You do know about the civilian paranoia, right?"

"Yes, I know about it. As of right now, I'm pretty sure I can keep it away from the Academy students and keep them mesmerized by the thought of being a ninja—"

"You'll divide families that way, kid, are you sure?" The old guy was apparently their spokesman.

"Unless you have another brilliant idea, I'd rather divide a few families than lose dozens of potential shinobi, screw over the ones we already have, and continue to weaken the military here." He was testing me; I was sure of it.

"What do you need from us, Uzumaki-chan?"

"You all still remember what it was like to be a ninja and you all know the skills you needed the most in wartime. I need you to help teach the Academy students and get them ready as fast as you possibly can. I can get you profiles to choose students from and if all of you agree, there's enough of you that no one will have to take more than two students. A majority of you will only get one."

They all studied me and I belatedly realized that I was still sitting at the edge of the platform.

"How many students are in the Academy?"

"Forty-nine."

"Ages?"

"I think the youngest are five and everyone above the age of eight has already been included in the Genin ranks."

"And what do we get for this?"

"I-I don't know. I'm sure I can figure something out."

"What about the Genin who are lagging behind their peers?"

"I was going to see if this worked before I tried anything else. If this doesn't, I don't want to waste any more of your time or resources."

"You said you're already shielding the Academy students from the paranoia?"

"Yes, at least, I sent a bunch of Genin to do what they can. I still need to try and talk down the Academy students' parents."

"Did the Hokage tell you to do any of this?"

"He barely told me anything but how to communicate with him and the Kiri front, to be nice to the Daimyō, and a mission scroll that only said 'lead the village in the absence of the Hokage'."

They all went silent and completely, frighteningly still. I thought I had their attention before, but now, I doubted they would have noticed if a naked marching band stomped though while tuning their instruments.

"What's with the weird looks?" I asked warily. The spell broke and they all started to murmur among themselves.

"You haven't—"

"Of course he hasn't, he wasn't even born when Sandaime-sama was appointed."

"The rumors—"

"Everyone knows the chances—"

"No one would share rumors like that—"

"He clearly doesn't know—"

"Does that mean—"

"It has to just be a precaution—"

"It's practically a tradition—"

"His teammate—"

"Someone should tell the kid—"

"Everyone's heard about the deaths—"

"It explains a lot—"

"He doesn't want it—"

"He'll know if—"

"He's only a child—"

"It makes sense—"

"Both the Shodai and the Nidaime—"

Someone grabbed my arm, dragged me out of the room, through a hallway I didn't even know existed, and stopped in a perfectly silent room.

"Calm down, Kichiro-kun," the ANBU crouched in front of me said. I automatically checked his chakra signature and relaxed the slightest bit when I realized it was the ANBU Rat.

"What were they talking about? Why were they all so tense? What don't I know?" I demanded and tried to storm out of the room. The ANBU pushed me back against the wall, a hand on my chest.

"None of it is applicable or relevant right now, calm down before you hurt yourself." He was right, my heart was pounding at ridiculous speeds, my breathing was irregular, and my limbs trembled. "You have Academy students to find teachers, angry parents of those students, many of the Genin, and one of the Chuunin to talk down, a hate campaign to stop, a team gathering intel on potential enemies, and a last resort barrier seal in the making. Don't worry about the gossip of a bunch of retired men with too much time on their hands."

He slowly released me and I slid down the wall rubbing my face. "I can't fight a propaganda war with the Daimyō," I told the ANBU. "I don't have the time, I don't know these people well enough, and if the bandits are actually shinobi and they call in people to put the village under siege, it will make the civilian lives as much hell as shinobi lives with rations and shortages and curfews—"

"Yes, you can, kid, you're not acting on your own. There are three ANBU here you can count on, Genin willing to obey you, and all the civilian members of shinobi clans will support you because your strength is the best chance they have to see their loved ones again. That is a decent percentage of the population."

"That's no majority. I haven't even been in charge for twenty-four hours and I'm already in over my head."

"It just seems like it, Kichiro-kun. In less than twenty-four hours, you've figured out a way to make the Hyuuga and Uchiha get along well enough to run a mission."

"Anyone will work with anyone under enough pressure. Besides, they're too young to be fully conditioned to be at odds with each other."

"You've earned the undying respect of teenage and preteen Genin by doing something absolutely stupid and implying permission to act independently."

"Yeah, and that's probably going to come back to bite me."

"The Daimyō wouldn't have started a campaign against you if he didn't consider you a threat to his base of power. He tried to subvert the Genin this morning when they were running around on your errands. It failed miserably."

"I don't understand the significance."

Rat rubbed the back of his neck. "Figures you wouldn't understand exactly how much power you have. The Daimyō, until now, has had such sway over the people, both shinobi and civilian, that not even the Hokage dared oppose him in any way. Not only that, but for the first time, someone other than him has a fingernail hold on his empire. He can't do anything about it until the Hokage returns and takes you out of a position of authority with an influx of more powerful troops loyal to the Hokage, and through him, loyal to the Daimyō. The display the young Senju put on convinced him that the Genin here are willing to kill for you and that you are willing and able to shield them from retribution. His troops could slaughter the Genin here, but their age means he could be accused of slaughtering children. The Hokage indicated you are stronger than anyone suspected and he has no way of knowing how his troops would stack up against you, nor does he know if the Hokage will take his side or yours since you are technically acting independently of the Hokage, rather than in his stead."

"And most likely, the Hokage will take my side since he put me in power and I'm the Kyuubi Jinchuuriki." The ANBU nodded. "Did the Hokage plan this?"

"He hoped you would provide enough of a smokescreen for Bird to infiltrate the Daimyō's ranks and provide a stable line of information about his activities and intentions. Unfortunately, now he's paranoid about spies, making Bird's task impossible, but effectively defanged enough to make the mission unnecessary. The Hokage may not be as well-liked as the Daimyō, simply because of the nature of his work, but one thing that he has never been proven directly responsible for is the death of a child, an action the Shodai made political suicide."

"So now I have the most powerful person in the country gunning for my head, and possibly my family's as well in order to get to me."

"Kichi—"

"No, it's fine, I'll figure something out. Is there anything else I don't know that might be relevant in the near future?"

"Not only are you a political threat to the Daimyō, but you've gotten under his skin and made the fight personal."

"I didn't mean—"

"Kid, you got under the Hokage's skin as well, whether you meant to or not."

"But that was intentional."

"And everyone has to deal with the fallout of their actions, intentional of not."

"Is he going to go after my family?"

"If he kills one of them, he gives you the right to challenge him to a fight to the death. No matter how old you are, you're a shinobi and he only has basic training in the samurai arts, he can't win."

"But he can still take a hostage."

Rat studied me. "You don't know a lot about your clan history, do you?"

"No, Kushina's the expert."

"Then here's a tidbit that you might want to be aware of. In the Land of Fire and the Land of Mist, there's an old superstition that kidnapping an Uzumaki equals self-destruction. In the time of the Clan Wars, several clans attempted to kidnap the Uzumaki for their sealing knowledge and genetics. None of them survived and the Uzumaki never raised a hand against them beyond the bare minimum it took to safely retrieve their clansman, which was unnerving, considering their tempers when someone insulted or cheated them. The Daimyō may not be superstitious, but he wouldn't dare take an Uzumaki hostage, not after both Suna and Kumo have been devastated with the common denominator being your sister. If anything, the young Namikaze is in the most danger of being kidnapped, but he and your sister are practically married already, so it's probably too close for comfort."

"Comforting. Is there anything else?"

"Not that I'm aware of."

"Then I'll go bring the old guys the Academy student files and hope they agree."

"They'll do anything to get a toe back into the shinobi world. They were just testing you to see if you were worth casting their lot with."

"Brilliant."

I marched back the way I had come. The ANBU's presence vanished as I opened the door and hurried to the Academy records room, retrieved two boxes worth of files, and carried them back to the auditorium. To my surprise, I didn't interrupt a conversation like I expected, but a rock-paper-scissors contest. I yelped as they descended on the files like flies to carrion. The old guy was the fastest, even though I was certain he was missing his entire leg and part of his hand, ripped off the top of the box and picked three seemingly random files before hopping back.

"Suckers!" He cackled at the others.

"Wait a minute—" I started to say, but all the files had already been taken and the victors had already fled the auditorium. I was left knocked on my ass facing over half the group with empty boxes at my feet.

"You were going to make two trips, right?" One asked hopefully, extending a hand to help me up.

I took it. "Um, no, that was all of the active Academy students. I promise there was enough for at least one each."

"It's impossible to train just one or two kids without taking missions. Three or four is ideal."

"Well, um, come find me in a day or two and I might be able to find you a student, or at least something to do."

Disappointed, they left and I realized I had no excuse to do anything except meet with the angry parents waiting for me.

I crept into the room without them noticing, and attached myself to the ceiling, hidden by a Genjutsu. Their conversation about me was less than flattering and was along the lines of me tricking my way into power. Before they could stir up my anger I released the Genjutsu and stood upside-down on the ceiling, waiting for them to notice me. It took nearly a minute. When they all fell silent, I flipped down and landed on the teacher's desk.

"Sorry about the wait. I was told you wished to speak with me on matters concerning the students enrolled in this Academy."

"And who are you? Class president?" A rather large, middle-aged civilian demanded, puffing out his chest. The effect was a bit marred by the beginnings of a beer belly.

"Chuunin, actually, Uzumaki Kichiro," I responded coolly, biting back an insult. "I am currently the commander of the shinobi stationed here, which, by default, makes me the head of this Academy."

"What idiot put a child in charge?" A woman scoffed.

"The Hokage assigned me to this position, and it would be greatly appreciated if this meeting would remain a civil discussion of complaints, not a bloodbath of insults and anger."

"That's rich coming from you, _murderer_!" Another, familiar, woman snarled and the others shouted their agreement.

"With all due respect, two months ago, I healed your burned hand and arm to the point where it didn't even scar."

She reddened, but didn't back down. "If I had known who you were, I would never have allowed you near me!" Emboldened by the mob mentality, she continued. "Your hands are bathed in the blood of innocents! Your actions have caused many more to die!"

A year ago, I might have believed her, but I'd been out on the front lines. The shinobi there were barely able to defend themselves and often couldn't even stand their ground. Yes, I had killed several others, but I never touched a civilian or anyone younger than fifteen, and I knew most of the shinobi out there had never killed a civilian, and only killed other shinobi. I struggled to remain calm. I could not afford to be the one to throw the first punch.

They sneered at me and I carefully ignored the expressions. Even so, the open derision was disturbing and I gained a new respect for policemen and politicians. The closest I'd ever been to a mob was protesters at military funerals and videos on the TV screen. Now, I was facing one down, and unlike the police, I didn't have orders and a shield to hide behind.

I couldn't defend myself to them, they wouldn't listen, but I had to try and calm them down, or at least contain them. "It would be greatly appreciated if this meeting would remain a civil discussion of complaints, not a bloodbath of insults and anger." I repeated myself. The shouting eventually died down. "Thank you. Now, I believe there were specific complaints to be addressed. Could you please state them in a polite manner?"

"I will not have my daughter learning from murderers and brainwashed into becoming one herself!" The man from before growled.

My temper bubbled far too close to the surface. "Is everyone here aware of the fact that Konoha is at war with both Kiri and Iwa?"

Heads nodded.

"Slightly inside the borders of the Land of Fire, thousands of shinobi and kunoichi are fighting, struggling to keep the two countries at bay. Their children are being orphaned to protect yours. Your children joined this Academy to protect you. Your children joined this Academy to learn to protect those orphans you whip when they are forced to beg for their food because this village has nothing to give them but their life! Your _children_ have stood up and said that the sacrifice of their parents won't be in vain!"

Most of them had already taken a step back.

"Yes, the ninja of this village are soldiers. Yes, the ninja of this village have killed. Yes, the skin of every ninja is dyed with blood, but as long as you live inside this village, as long as you live within the borders of this country, as long as you live underneath the protection of those soldiers, you have absolutely no right to spit on them, slander them, and reject them!"

They flinched backwards, ashamed. But, just like idiots from my world, a few of them cared more about the ideals than facts. The woman I healed stepped forward. "I'd rather be dead than live under disgusting creatures like you!"

My head tipped to the side. Without warning, I leapt off the desk and landed on her, my feet digging into her stomach and knocking her flat on her back. I crouched on top of her, staring down curiously and letting the tiniest bit of killing intent leak out of me, just enough to keep everyone else at bay. I reached into my weapons pouch and slowly drew my only kunai and held it against the side of her throat. "You'd rather be dead, right?"

She stared up at me, terrified.

"You know what enemy shinobi do to captured Konoha ninja? They're beaten, of course. But, you know, the hands have the more sensory receptors than any other part of the body, except, perhaps, the face. They break their fingers, shatter them, one by one. They rape the women, repeatedly. They seem to think it's funny to burn them in a pile of dead leaves. The leaves burn away and the fire goes out before the captured ninja dies, but it's still one of the most painful, horrifying experiences one can have. The whole time, the enemy shinobi don't stop mocking them, insulting them, demanding information, making promises only to break them. Sometimes, if the ninja gives up the information they want, they're returned to us to live ashamed of themselves. So go ahead, call me a murderer, call my little sister one, call your children killers, but you're the real evil. When we signed up for this job, we knew we might be subjected to that torture, but when you rage at us for corrupting your children, you're raging at your children as well."

I had spread my weight evenly over the woman, but she was starting to wheeze anyways so I stepped off her and pulled away.

"You think I'm heavy?" I scoffed. "There's this one Iwa jutsu that crushes people under rocks bigger than your houses. The only thing that's left of them is a smear, we have to identify them by the remnants of weapons, clothes, or personal possessions. You know, if it doesn't crush their head then they could stay alive for hours, choking on dust. They don't die from blood loss; the blood can't escape from their body. They die because chemicals in their body become more concentrated than they can handle and their kidneys die. It's worse than poison. No one can rescue them, because they can't breathe enough to call for help, nor would they dare, in case Iwa heard them instead. That's the kind of thing the people you accuse of murder fight in order to keep you safe."

"Stop, please stop!" She begged, scrambling back.

"Sure, I'm just a kid, but I've been there, and don't you dare insult the people who are still there! You will respect the choices of your children, and this disrespect will end!"

Before the woman could make any move to stand up, I stormed out of the room.


	25. Chapter 25

I was about to enter headquarters when three connected blurs heading straight for me caught my eye. I automatically reached for my sticks when I recognized the two Hyuugas and the Uchiha. I couldn't tell who was carrying whom, but at least one of them was injured. I threw open the door and they hurried inside, following me closely as I led them into the room with the table. Thankfully, I had cleared all the files off the table before I left earlier that morning. Without prompting, they laid the injured Hyuuga on the table. Even before the boy was fully on the table, I had my hand on his head running diagnostics. Someone had nearly clawed out both of his eyes after slicing his Achilles tendons. Eyes were extremely delicate and there was a ridiculous number of nerves to reconnect and something had managed to shred the retina of his left eye and the right eye was nearly gouged out.

I cursed. The entire process was made even more complicated by the fact that I never healed a damaged eye before, only memorized the textbook, and the Byakugan operated differently than a normal eye.

The more I tried to fix, the more the eye seemed to fall apart.

"Hyuuga, come here," I ordered the other Hyuuga. To his credit, he didn't jerk away when I placed my hand over both his eyes. Someone had nearly managed to take one of his eyes as well, but only his eyelid sustained any damage. Using the healthy eyes as a guideline, I tried to reconstruct the eyes as best I could, but within a minute, I knew it wasn't going to work, even though I continued to try. The Uchiha made himself useful by stemming the bleeding of his own wounds and that of the two Hyuuga. By the time he finished, I was exhausted and struggling to remain standing, finally giving up on the attempt. "Shit, this isn't going to work, I've never treated damaged eyes before and I've never even studied the Byakugan. Cosmetically, I can fix it, but your vision is going to forever suck, if you can even see, and I doubt you'll be able to use the Byakugan again, unless you can find someone better than me to fix it."

"The last medic with knowledge of the Byakugan died three days ago," the now-blind Hyuuga said, trying to sit up. I reflexively grabbed his arm and helped. When I tried to pull my hand away, he caught my wrist with disturbing accuracy. "You're shaking."

I scowled and jerked my arm away. "I'm assuming those bandits weren't just bandits." I redirected their attention

"They were at least Jōnin-level," the Hyuuga with his vision intact murmured, jumping up on the table to put his arm around his brother.

"Did you get a description?"

"Kiri?" one of the Hyuuga guessed.

"It was one of the Yuki clan as well as one of the Seven Swordsman, both from Kirigakure," the Uchiha clarified

"Brilliant." Someone knocked at the door. "Come in!" I called. The door opened and a fidgety Chuunin kunoichi opened the door. Her hair was extremely long and a washed-out blond color. The entire mess was tied up in several frizzy buns and decorated with what appeared to be a handmade version of barbed wire made with tacks and ninja wire. Her Chuunin vest had glass baubles sewn onto it and instead of the standard long-sleeved uniform shirt and shinobi pants, her arms were bare and she wore a plaited, knee-length, navy skirt that reminded me of the skirts Catholic schoolgirls had to wear in my old world. She was barefoot, which was strange, but I didn't comment on any of it. What had me slightly worried was the glazed look on her face. I quickly checked for a Genjutsu, but she was clean. She made me think of a lethal version of Luna Lovegood.

"I'm Yamanaka Mayu," she introduced herself quietly, holding out a folder to me. "There's several communications for you, Uzumaki-sama."

"Thank you, Yamanaka-san," I took the folder from her.

"Mayu. Just Mayu," she insisted, but I barely heard her; I had already opened the file and was reading the coded messages. It was written in Jōnin code, which should have been above Mayu's ability to decipher. She seemed professional, so even if she was capable, I doubted she read it. I wasn't supposed to be able to decode it either, but I was beginning to think I wasn't supposed to know half the things Sakumo taught me.

 _[H118]Sarutobi H.—007309[Incoming potential threat. Infiltration. Origin: Iwagakure. Recommended action: activate security seal 28576.]_

 _[H119]Sarutobi H.—007309[Incoming active threat. Mutiny. Origin: Konohagakure. Recommended action: twenty-four-hour civilian lockdown.]_

 _[C274]Shimura D.—007309[Incoming active threat. Mutiny. Origin: Konohagakure. Recommended action: twenty-four-hour civilian lockdown, identify and publicly execute ringleaders.]_

 _[H120]Sarutobi H.—007309[Incoming active threat. Abduction. Target: Uzumaki Nagato. Goal: Rinnegan, manipulation of governing body. Origin: Amegakure. Recommended action: target lockdown, utilize seal perimeter 887 around habitation.]_

 _[C275]Shimura D.—007309[Incoming active threat. Abduction. Target: Uchiha Hiroto. Goal: Sharingan. Origin: Kirigakure. Recommended action: target lockdown, utilize seal perimeter 887 around habitation.]_

 _[C276]Shimura D.—007309[Incoming active threat. Abduction. Target: Hyuuga Hiashi. Goal: Byakugan. Origin: Kirigakure. Recommended action: target lockdown, utilize seal perimeter 887 around habitation, apply Hyuuga curse seal.]_

 _[C277]Shimura D.—007309[Incoming active threat. Abduction. Target: Hyuuga Hizashi. Goal: Byakugan. Origin: Kirigakure. Recommended action: target lockdown, utilize seal perimeter 887 around habitation.]_

 _[H121]Sarutobi H.—007309[Incoming potential threat. Assassination. Target: Uzumaki Kichiro. Goal: unknown. Origin: unknown. Recommended action: draw out threat.]_

 _[H122]Sarutobi H.—007309[Incoming potential threat. Assassination. Target: Daimyō. Goal: unknown. Origin: unknown. Recommended action: target lockdown, utilize seal perimeter 887 around habitation.]_

 _[C278]Shimura D.—007309[Message: don't screw up, boy.]_

 _[J736]Hatake S.—007309[Message: I'm proud of you, Kichiro, and you are fully capable of succeeding in your position. Remember: always land on your feet, defy expectations and fulfil them, and fight back.]_

"Mayu-san, when were these messages received?"

"Five minutes ago via runner, Uzumaki-sama. The runner is awaiting your response."

I pointed at the Hyuuga twins. "Which one of you is which?" I demanded.

"I'm Hiashi," the one who had been blinded replied. The other didn't even bother turning his head in my direction.

Inside the file was paper to reply on as well as a fountain pen. I scribbled down my coded response.

 _[C000]007309—Sarutobi H.[Response: H118. Resources unavailable.]_

 _[C001]007309—Sarutobi H.[Response: H119. Alternate measures taken. Threat addressed.]_

 _[C100]007309—Shimura D.[Response: C274. Alternate measures taken. Threat addressed.]_

 _[C002]007309—Sarutobi H.[Response: H120. Resources unavailable.]_

 _[C101]007309—Shimura D.[Response: C275. Resources unavailable.]_

 _[C102]007309—Shimura D.[Response: C276. Resources unavailable. Message: Byakugan destroyed.]_

 _[C103]007309—Shimura D.[Response: C277._ _Resources unavailable.]_

 _[C003]007309—Sarutobi H.[Response: H121. Threat level: 0]_

 _[C004]007309—Sarutobi H.[Response: H122._ _Message: If that bastard doesn't shut up and sit down soon I'll kill him myself and save everyone the effort, no one here will mourn his passing.]_

 _[C104]007309—Shimura D.[Response: C278._ _Message received. Reply: It would have been more helpful if you trussed up the Seven Swordsmen before you hurried them along; don't screw up again, councilman, your messes are bigger than your arrogance and I'm not sure I can clean this one up.]_

 _[C200]007309—Hatake S.[Response: J736. Message received.]_

 _[C005]007309—Sarutobi H.[Message: The Seven Swordsmen are surrounding the village; where's the button to make them go away?]_

I handed her the page with the coded responses. She turned to leave.

"A moment, Mayu-san," I said quietly. "I'd rather earn your respect than it be given only through the chain of command."

Her face fell. "You don't remember me, do you?"

"No?"

"Kumo front, six months ago?"

"That was six months ago," I deadpanned.

"You saved my life!"

"I did?" I honestly had no idea what she was talking about. I'd probably saved hundreds of lives on that mission and twice as many careers.

She looked like she was about to cry and as cold as it sounded, I didn't care, I'd fix the mess later. For now, I had three people with an active threat to their person in the room with me, as well as several unfriendly Jōnin camping outside the village. Minato and Kushina burst into the room at that moment, the two other Genin who were supposed to be helping them, stumbling along behind, winded. Minato looked a little pale, but otherwise, he seemed fine.

"You look sick, Nii-san," Kushina announced, plopping down beside me.

One thing annoyed me about this world. No one got colds, except for me. No one got the flu, except me. No one got sick, except me. Every few months, I was out for the count for at least a day, more often, two or three. Apparently, Kichiro had always been a bit of a sickly kid, but in my old world I could count on one hand the number of times I'd been sick or too injured to function in school or at work. Three migraines, a broken ankle, and a nasty case of the flu. In a single year, I got sick more times than I had in twenty-seven years of living in my old world. Injuries, though, were ten times as common.

"I'm not sick," I murmured back, rubbing my face in agitation. My hands shook. I knew I had far more strenuous training sessions that lasted twice as long as the time I had spent on this job, but the sheer magnitude of every action I made weighed on me twice as much as any training session ever could, no matter how intellectually, physically, and emotionally strenuous Sakumo made it.

I needed rest. I probably could use a good meal as well, but most of all, I needed to lie down somewhere dark and safe and just sleep, preferably alone. There wasn't much rest to be found while beneath two pre-adolescent mini-heaters and a dozen blankets, especially when I preferred to sleep with the AC on max. Not that there was any AC.

"You're shaking," Hiashi pointed out.

"I am certain everyone here has a job to do that does not include neglecting it to ride my ass about my health. In case you've forgotten, I am the medic here, not you." They all flinched. Mayu's fist closed around the coded message I gave her, but she didn't leave. "Report."

The Uchiha began. "Once we determined a chain of command, we set out to scout the south-southeast region where two potential hostiles had been noted, Dōjutsus active. The moment we were within range of the camp, both Hyuugas froze and I recognized one of the Seven Swordsmen."

Hiashi continued. "The moment the hostiles entered our range of vision, it was obvious they were Jōnin-level. We stopped to run back, but they somehow saw us and one of them attacked, aiming for our faces with claws of ice. I jumped in front of Hizashi to attempt the Hakkeshō Kaiten, but failed when the assailant's partner slashed my ankles."

That was probably the only effective way to stop that particular move.

The Uchiha picked up the thread. "I melted the Yuki's attack against me, grabbed both of them, and shunshined back into the village."

"Do you know anything about the status of their health?"

"No."

"What do you think the chances are that the other six individuals are just Jōnin from other villages like the fiasco with the Raikage?" I asked hopefully.

"Negligible," Mayu said. "In this war, the Seven Swordsmen haven't separated unless it's while fighting and they always end up back together."

" _Shit._ "

"You say that a lot," Kushina commented. "What does it mean?" Right, I tried to curse in English whenever kids were around.

"Where are those barrier seals I asked for?" I ignored Kushina's question.

Minato held out a tube of paper. I took it and wrapped one of the seals around one of my sticks, tossing the others towards the most likely ANBU hiding place. To my relief, it disappeared before it landed. I quickly distracted everyone from the phenomenon.

"How many Genin working together will it take for a single one of the Swordsmen to be taken down?"

"Theoretically, a single Genin can take down a Kage," Mayu shrugged.

"I don't want theories; I want the numbers realistically."

"At least a dozen experienced Genin who are accustomed to working together and they will suffer heavy casualties."

"We don't have a group that fits those criteria, _shit_." I paced, struggling to bring up what I knew about the Seven Swordsmen. I remembered someone had managed to stand up to them in the manga but I couldn't remember who. "We don't have anyone here with more than a basic understanding of Kenjutsu—"

"Hatake-san taught you how to use his sabre!" Minato insisted.

"Yes, but that sabre is currently being used elsewhere and it's not my primary weapon and too damn exhausted to be any better than a Genin."

"Then get some rest and then go out there and kick their asses!" Minato exclaimed as if it was simple.

"You're overestimating my abilities. With the Kyuubi helping, I'm low Jōnin-level at best, I doubt I could beat one of them, much less a pair and then three other pairs. I'll need another few years of experience and heavy training to get anywhere near that level."

Everyone looked at me with a mixture of awe and envy, completely forgetting the fact that we were about to get our asses handed to us by a force a tenth of our size. The front door of the house slammed. Everyone jumped. I pushed past Minato and the two other Genin to see. The Uchiha tried to stop me, but I was faster and slid out of the room. It was a pair of Genin, their faces white, trying to calm five crying Academy students and two other civilian children. Outside, there were raised voices.

"Kushina, put up silencing seals around that room. The lot of you, head in there, okay?"

The Academy students nearly ran over me in their haste. One of the Genin hid her face as she passed by me. It took a lot to upset a Genin, they were shinobi after all and conditioned to be able to put away their emotions in all but the most extreme situations. As soon as the door closed behind them, I opened the front door with a bang, leaving it to swing loosely. Two retired shinobi were trying to placate the mob, but it wasn't helping and the fact that both had severely disfiguring injuries probably made everything worse.

"What is going on?" I shouted above the crowd clamoring on the street.

"You bastard! Give me back my child!" A man bellowed. "He's not even enrolled in the damned Academy."

"What is going on?" I repeated myself, firmer. My second mob of the day was twice as large. In a classroom, I could make my voice resound a little bit, but in the street, my voice was thin and carried no authority whatsoever. Down the street, a group of people had gathered to watch. Among them, I recognized the Daimyō. They ignored me and kept shouting indistinguishable demands. It was a few minutes to noon and I hoped the Genin I sent out to infiltrate the civilians had the sense to stay out of the way I could see them crouched on the rooftops, hidden as well as Genin could hide, barely enough to fool a civilian, much less me. I learned to spot Jōnin-level opponents very quickly when Sakumo decided to start training my reflexes to react to surprise attacks.

I was probably going to pay for just standing there and watching the civilians raging, but unwilling to pass some line between us, but it seemed like there was a hundred major problems to deal with at once and they were all so far above my ability to fix that I could only stop and stare at them, strategizing, as if I was in some kind of trance.

In my inaction, the strength of the mob drew more civilians in, no matter how hard I tried to resolve things peacefully. The thing about mob mentality is that it makes people extremely stupid. It was a very bad idea for a civilian to threaten a shinobi, no matter what rank. Even a Genin could kill a civilian faster than they knew what hit them. Sure, there's strength in numbers, but it takes a lot of people with plastic knives to take down a single person with a machine gun. When the mob reached a point where I would have had a hard time defending myself without killing anyone should they attack, most of the Academy students had been covertly hurried into the building and safely locked away, along with the youngest and least experienced of the Genin not guarding the gate. It only took a few minutes for the mob filled the street and go so far as to overflow into the neighboring streets.

By this point, the civilians were beginning to advance menacingly on me, the line between us dissolving. Konoha was one of the hidden villages that pushed teamwork the most. Because of that, Konoha shinobi had a fairly strong moral compass, for ninja, which wasn't saying much, but the point stood. Genin and Academy students end up stuck at a point that leaves them with a foot in both worlds. They're treated as ninja, and, for the most part, expected to act like one, but the true impacts of being a ninja hadn't quite sunk in yet, nor had they fully abandoned the morals they grew up with. To see me, a kid just like themselves, being verbally abused by a bunch of adults yanked at their sense of justice. To hear those adults chanting 'down with the ninja' was a personal offense. The Genin started to mass behind me, shouting right back at the civilians. Most of the younger Chuunin would have done the same, so I didn't blame them, but they still defied orders.

I waited until everything was about to erupt in violence before I acted. The way I did so would probably leave me eternally grounded from Ninjutsu if Sakumo caught wind of it. With what I was intending to do, that pun was unnecessary and inappropriate.

Normally ninjutsu was channeled through the hands, because it was the easiest to control that way, however, theoretically, jutsu could be performed through any tenketsu in the body, though it wasn't recommended. In fact, Ninjutsu practitioners were often specifically warned against it. Screw convention. I pulled on the Kyuubi's chakra to fuel a massive downward gust of air through my feet that quickly covered the whole block as soon as I was high enough in the air. It was strong enough that it forced everyone to a knee and I could keep my arms crossed dramatically to make up for the absolute lack of presence my nine-year-old, three-foot-ten, sixty-pounds-soaking-wet body had. I was extremely careful that it was only the Kyuubi's chakra that everyone below me felt, untainted by killing intent from either me or Kurama, even though we both wanted to just knock them all catatonic, or dead as Kurama wanted, until they regained their good sense and perspective. That would be quite counter-productive.

" **ENOUGH!** " I roared, the Kyuubi's chakra deepening my voice and projecting it so everyone could hear clearly. " **You are disgraceful to yourselves, your parents, and your children, all of you. We are at** ** _war_** **! We are** ** _losing_** **this war and all you can do is shout and scream at each other? It's** ** _shameful_** **that citizens of what used to be the most powerful of the hidden villages, the original hidden village, the hidden village built on ideals of** ** _peace_** **and** ** _unity_** **would turn against itself so easily. Civilians, you claim this is about the Academy children, but let me put something into perspective for you. There are fourteen Academy students who are not a part of a shinobi clan. Of those fourteen, nine are orphans who speak for themselves. Five come from civilian families.**

" **It is the responsibility of everyone in this village to step up and protect it and the children of it. It is absolutely repulsive that you are protesting the decision of five children who chose to step up and learn to protect themselves because you don't have the guts to do it instead. Under normal circumstances, the penalty for such blatant disobedience of the established rules of this village is death. These protests end now. If you don't like the way this village is protected or led, then leave. You have one hour to gather your things and march out of this village to fend for yourselves. If you stay and attempt to disobey the laws of this village again,** ** _you will be killed_** **. Genin, you had** ** _explicit_** **orders to stand down from this conflict, yet,** ** _thirty-one_** **of you directly disobeyed that order. You know the penalty for insubordination to this degree. Report to Interrogation in one hour. Dismissed.** "

I shunshined away, aiming for the most secluded part of the village I knew of: the small forest beside the memorial stone. I landed the shunshin ten yards from where I intended it, on my hands and knees. Before I even established if I was alone or not, the little bit of food left in my stomach clawed and burned its way up my esophagus. It was mostly bile and it was barely enough to spit out into the mat of leaves beside me. I bent over until my forehead nearly touched the ground, my eyes burning and my hands pulling at my hair.

Someone took a knee beside me and laid a heavy hand on my back. The remnants of the Kyuubi's chakra automatically identified them as Rat.

Without a word, he smothered the Kyuubi's chakra with his own until it dissipated. As it left, my exhaustion, stress, and frustration just seemed to grow heavier. "Kichiro-kun, Bird is impersonating you in order to take care of those still in headquarters." He reported softly. "Unless it's urgent, you can deal with the rest of the problems once you've gotten some rest. You should have been pulled out hours ago."

He picked me up like a child and started to weave a powerful Genjutsu to hide us before shunshining to the Uzumaki house. Ise warily opened the door a few seconds later and the ANBU settled me gently in his arms before taking off, never seen, and Ise hurried inside without question.

I could hear the sound of children eating and chatting in the dining room as Ise set me on my feet. "You're in a bad state, kiddo," he murmured, helping me slide the vest and haori off my shoulders and hanging them up on hooks that had probably been installed sometime that day. I took off my shoes and as soon as I was done, he picked me up and carried me into the living room, closing the door behind us, and sitting down on one of the chairs, rocking slightly.

My parents and grandparents in my former life weren't very good parents. My immediate needs may have been met and they kept me on the straight and narrow, but I always knew I was missing something, and I didn't care until now. Unlike them, Ise cared about me as a person, not as a legacy or responsibility. I curled against him and was asleep before I could think any further.

* * *

 _Author's note: I am floored by the amount of feedback this is getting! As of today: 109 reviews, 293 followers, and 204 favorites! For those of you who like statistics, this story has been in circulation for 103 days. This means it has a rounded average of 1 review, 3 followers, and 2 favorites PER DAY! This story will have 101 chapters total. If those averages remain steady, by the time I plan to finish posting, there will be 672 reviews, 1,806 followers, and 1,257 favorites. Right now, that's enough to be on the third page of the top OC stories on this website! I'm speechless._


	26. Chapter 26

I woke up to the rumble of Ise's chest beneath my ear. Unconsciously, I clutched at his shirt even as he rubbed my shoulder reassuringly. Someone had removed the remainder of my gear as I slept, then tucked a warm blanket under my chin. I blinked open my eyes. My grip on his shirt had pulled his collar down just enough to reveal a thick, old scar just beneath his collarbone. Just past him, all my gear was neatly piled onto a small end table. On the corner of the table was a sweating glass of water and one of my textbooks on human anatomy balanced atop it.

Ise replied to someone and the room fell silent once again. He wrapped the arm he had been gesturing with around me. "Feeling better?" He asked softly.

I nodded, tightening my grip on him. I could sure as hell act like a child if I wanted to. By my calculations, I had about a decade of child-time stored up from my previous life stored up and I wanted to use it.

"I'm not going to kick you off, kiddo," he assured me, his grip tightening the slightest. "I'll be here as long as you need me, and I'll be here even when you don't. That's a promise."

"Promise, promise?" I asked in a small voice. I deserved to be a child.

"Promise, promise."

"No matter what?"

"It doesn't matter what you say, do, or even think, Kichiro. I'll be here for you no matter what. I'll love you and I'll take care of you. A promise is a promise."

There was a long silence as I buried my face in Ise's shoulder, forcibly silencing any thoughts that did not pertain to my immediate vicinity and listening to Ise's steady heartbeat underneath my ear.

"Ryuunosuke, your father, was a shinobi, you know that?"

"Yeah, he died just after Kushina was born."

"He was one of my friends, just like Midori was one of Fusō's."

I stayed silent, gripping his shirt tightly.

"The Uzumaki may be a mostly-civilian clan, but unlike the clans here, the civilians take care of the shinobi just as much as the shinobi protect the civilians. You work in a world without morals and I know you don't like it; I know you've fought against it." He put his hand on the side of my head and rubbed his thumb over the seal on my forehead. I squeezed my eyes closed. "While you were on the mission to seal the Hachibi, yes I know about it, even though the general public doesn't, I met with the Sandaime. He told me a lot about you, about the sealing, about your personality, about your sister. He was trying to make sure I knew exactly what I was getting myself into when Fusō and I promised to take care of you. Remember what I said about the civilians taking care of shinobi? Well, you can talk to me about anything, you know that? I've heard it all, kiddo, you're not going to surprise or scare me with anything you've come up against, okay?"

His arms tightened and he laid his head on mine.

"You can tell me anything, any time. I won't breathe a word to anyone, I promise."

I didn't move or react for a long time, but eventually, I couldn't help it. "I threatened to slaughter a bunch of civilians earlier and they were entitled to their concerns; they were _right_ to say something was wrong."

Ise's arms tightened and he carded his fingers through my hair. He took a breath to say something but I ignored it.

"The Genin got involved and I ordered them to turn themselves over. They disobeyed a direct order and they were _right_ to, but I told them, I told a bunch of kids to turn themselves over to be killed—" My throat closed.

Ise shifted so he could look at me. "Let me ask you this: were you wrong according to the law?"

"They were right—"

"That's not what I'm asking. I'm asking if _you_ , according to the laws you are charged to carry out and constrained by, were wrong."

"Sometimes the law—"

"That's not what I'm asking. Did you break the law?"

"No, but—"

"Did they?"

"Yes, but—"

"If you hadn't done anything, what would have happened?"

"Anything could have happened!"

"What was the most likely course of events?" He asked patiently.

I opened my mouth to respond, but before I could answer, I realized the conclusion he was leading me towards. "Please, just stop," I begged.

"Hatake-san never taught you distinguish between a lawful, necessary evil and a true evil, did he?"

"Institutionalized evil is still evil, isn't it?"

"Or he tried to teach you and you refused to listen. We're not talking about institutionalized evil, kiddo."

"Then what—"

"If, say, the Kazekage attempted to kidnap Minato and Kushina in front of you, how would you respond?"

"I-I would do my utmost to make sure he didn't succeed."

"Kyuubi or not, no matter how much the Hokage thinks you're capable of, you are most certainly not Kage-level."

I didn't have a response to that, he was absolutely right.

"If the Kazekage were to attack them, you would have to use every ability you have to try and counter him, correct?"

"Yes."

"You would use lethal force, correct?"

"Yes."

"But remember, the Kazekage would only be attacking them in order to protect his own people. By threatening them in a way that cannot be ignored, he would be able to manipulate you, Jiraiya-sama, and by extension, Hokage-sama as well, all to prevent his people from being harmed by Konoha. Would you still use lethal force?"

"He started this war—"

"It doesn't matter who started it, this world was on a slippery slope towards war on the part of every single entity involved. Would you care what his motives are when there is an immediate threat to the people you love?"

"Not really," I answered honestly. I liked to think of myself as a good person but I was just as bad as everyone else. It was a humiliating thought.

"And if the person initiating the threat was stronger than you, you would use lethal force to stop them, correct?"

"I wouldn't have a choice."

"What if, say, Minato and Kushina were fighting with each other and refused to be protected?"

"They would never—"

"And if you had to address their fight first, would you threaten them with the potential consequences of their utter lack of cooperation, no matter how severe they may be?"

"If that's what it took, I would have to," I acknowledged.

"Do you see the analogy?"

"Oh."

"You aren't omnipotent, kiddo. You're strong, yes, but not strong enough to prevent problems before they happen or powerful enough to stop them from escalating. It doesn't matter how weak the civilians are separately, together, after rallying the Genin against them and nearly initiating a fight, they are more powerful than even a Kage. You didn't mindlessly threaten a bunch of Genin and civilians, you threatened a mob that could have torn this village apart more thoroughly than any enemy ninja could hope to accomplish. No, what you did may not have been right, but it was your only choice unless you wanted to see this village and the people in it razed to dust."

"What about those Genin who are probably already dead?"

"Only the ultimate authority in this village can kill a loyal shinobi. You don't have to kill them, no matter what procedure says, just make sure they've learned their lesson. They've likely only been detained."

"What time is it?"

"Just before 1700."

"That means I have to go soon for the Genin meeting." I made no motion to move from Ise's lap. I liked being cared for far too much to voluntarily leave.

"You're staying and eating a full meal before you go anywhere. I may not be a shinobi, but I'm a fully-trained Uzumaki and no one enters or leaves this house without my consent. So you, no leaving without permission."

I eyed the walls ominously at that statement. He didn't mean it to be malicious, but any other ninja probably would have balked at the implication they were trapped. "You know, it's technically against the law for you to detain a shinobi."

Ise rolled his eyes and set me on my feet, the blanket still wrapped snugly around my shoulders. "Yes, but just because you're technically clan head, doesn't mean you don't have to defer to your elders." He stood up and shook out his legs before picking me up and setting me on his shoulders. Sure, I could race across rooftops and perform gymnastics, acrobatics, and contortionist moves people from my old world could only dream of, but there was something about being carried by someone for no reason whatsoever that was more thrilling than anything else, even though I had to duck to avoid hitting my head on the ceiling and had to slide down to cling to Ise's back to safely make it through the doorway, the blanket slipping off, forgotten.

"'Chiro-nii-sama! To-chan!" The other children exclaimed as we passed through the door and Ise closed it behind him. My gear was still within arm's reach and I was certain that wasn't a good thing for civilian kids to have access to.

"Nii-sama?" I asked Ise softly, struggling to ignore the tickle in my throat.

He chuckled. "You're smart, but you got no clue how much the other kiddos of this village adore you, and a lot of it originated with this group here." He turned to address the kids crowding around his waist. I hadn't noticed before, but Ise wasn't a small man. He was easily almost six feet tall and was strong enough to not have a problem dragging the seven kids hanging off him away from the door. I supposed that, being a doctor, he would probably have to drag people around more often than he would probably like. Then again, the kids were practically starving in the overwhelmed, understaffed, and poorly funded Konoha orphanage and a few months wasn't enough to feed them up to healthy weights. Most of them had barely grown since we left Uzu. "Why aren't all of you kiddos helping your Ka-chan in the kitchen?" He asked.

"Kushina-chan and Minato-chan are helping!" The little girl whose arm I broke nearly three years ago, which I still felt a little guilty for, exclaimed from behind me, just before her arms snaked around my waist and she hung off me. I tightened my grip on Ise.

"Chan?" I asked slightly incredulous. I tried calling Minato that once and he nearly managed to kick me between the legs in retaliation. Kushina didn't mind, but that was probably because she was a girl.

"They're both wusses," the girl informed me sagely. I snorted. Psychological trauma aside, they were both crazy strong. The only reason I beat Minato in spars was because I was much more creative and able to track Jōnin-level opponents. If he kept control of his temper and stopped trying to go toe-to-toe with Ninjutsu he didn't have, he probably could beat me with a handful of luck on his side. I'd never seen them spar, but Kushina was on his level, with the 'iron sharpens iron' deal they had going. I knew better than to try and face the two of them at once. I suspected they were better than I thought if the story I heard on the border about how they gave Jiraiya a run for his money for a bet was accurate.

"I don't think they appreciate the name-calling," I informed her before detaching her grip from around my waist and climbing up Ise to reach the ceiling and stand there, upside-down, out of reach of the grasping hands.

"They hate it," the girl said, standing directly beneath me. Ise was sitting on the floor talking to the other children, abandoning me to her and Nagato.

"Then why do you call them that?"

"Because it's true."

I was about to respond when Fusō shrieked in surprise. At the scream, I reflexively bent my knees and stepped into an upside-down Taijutsu stance, grabbing at my absent sticks.

"You are going to give me a heart attack one day, young man!" She scolded me half-heartedly. "It's time for dinner, everyone," she continued.

Everyone dashed into the dining room except the little girl beneath me. I frowned and took a step towards the dining room. She stayed underneath me. I took two quick steps before scampering into the dining room and the girl stayed under me the entire time until Fusō snatched her up and placed her on a bright pink flower-patterned cushion around the low table. "Stop teasing your brothers, Misaki," she scolded lightly as I dropped to the ground. Fusō pulled a bright green cushion down from a shelf in the corner of the room where the other children were taking their cushions and sitting around the table.

"I want 'Chiro-kun to sit next to me!" Misaki said enthusiastically.

Fusō obliged and set what I assumed to be my cushion down beside her in the middle of the table, patting it reassuringly. It was the same bright green as my haori, the same bright green as medical Ninjutsu, and was patterned with what appeared to be silver senbon.

Fusō and Ise sat together, opposite of me, while Minato sat on my other side, Kushina beside him. The food was spread out on the table and after a clipped ' _itidakimasu_ ' everyone began to eat. It wasn't until a few bites in that I realized I honestly couldn't remember the last time I ate. There seemed to be plenty to go around I politely listened as Misaki managed to eat anything placed in front of her while speaking, but never speaking with her mouth full. I didn't quite figure out how she did it, I was too occupied with my own food, but towards the end of my meal I found myself insanely curious. I used shinobi skills that not even Minato, who was right next to me, would notice as I continued to slip food onto the girl's plate and it continued to vanish into her mouth even though she _never stopped talking_. While Fusō divvyed up the last scraps of food to the very-full children, Misaki decided she wasn't content just babbling at me, she linked her arm in mine and nearly sat in my lap as she leaned into me.

She was a cute child; I would give her that. Fusō had tied her hair out of her face for the meal, but it was nearly as long as Kushina's, who refused, for some reason, to cut her hair, even though it was a liability in the field. The girl wore an obviously new, simple kimono made of rough, homespun fabric. Nice clothes were nonexistent considering the lack of trade during wartime. All the children were dressed similarly and the Uzumaki crest was very clear on their backs, larger than the crest on the Konoha shinobi flak jackets. It made a point that the Uzumaki still survived. In my opinion, it was a little dangerous for them to make themselves targets so willingly, but they were civilians and Kushina and I took all the heat for our names simply because we were ninja and visible to people outside the village. Nagato was the one truly in danger because he had the potential to be a shinobi but had yet to be trained to defend himself.

Belatedly I realized that I had been staring at the wall in front of me, lost in thought while being asked a question. Minato elbowed me sharply and pointed at Misaki. "I'm sorry, I wasn't paying very much attention, what was it again?" I asked her as kindly as I could.

"Will you do my hair, 'Chiro-kun? Kushina-chan is mean and Minato-chan sucks."

Minato choked as he took a sip of water and glared at the girl. Unfortunately, his and Kushina's combined killing intent was pathetic and probably wouldn't even upset an infant, but they still received a warning glare from the two adults across the table. The look was also directed at Misaki for the careless insults, but she didn't seem to notice. I glanced at the time. I had a little more than twenty minutes before I had to get moving and figure out whatever the hell I missed while asleep.

"Um," I looked to Fusō for rescue, but she only smiled and nodded in encouragement. Misaki took Fusō's answer as mine, grabbed my wrist, and all but dragged me out of the room, with almost immediate help from the other girl-orphan from Uzu. Kushina just smirked at my plight and waved at me sadistically. Ha, see if I would defend her from the name-calling hellion again. Minato tried to trip me, but I accidentally-not-really stomped on the pressure point in his ankle and fell to jab my knee into the pressure point in Kushina's thigh. They were both too proud to do anything other than wince. It was a petty victory, but they knew better than to tease me.

Misaki dragged me to the small vanity mirror set up in the corner of the room as well as a collection of dolls spread out around it. I couldn't help but compare the girl to Kushina. At her age, Kushina was spending every free moment training or studying. Misaki was frighteningly normal for her age, which I assumed to be six. The other girl shoved a comb and ribbon into my hands while Misaki sat down in front of the mirror. "I want something pretty. Something special," she demanded. Frankly, just like any normal guy, I didn't know how to do hair, so I stalled by brushing out the tangles and trying to remember what a braid looked like and figure out the mechanics of it. When I thought about it, I'd never seen a single braid in this world. _After a long minute of thought, I remembered when she had tried to teach me how to French braid. Her hair had been just long enough to hold one if it started on the top of her head, and I had managed it._

Misaki sat surprisingly still as I struggled to do something I only accomplished once, nearly four years ago. Thank heavens for the dexterity Sakumo drilled into me. It wasn't much different than twisting ninja wire to make it stronger. The hardest part was tying the thing with a ribbon instead of an elastic band before the whole thing came out.

"Um, how's that?" I asked, wincing. _It sort-of resembled the French braid she taught me, if I squinted._ Misaki reached back to feel it, her mouth hanging open. "I suppose I could try it again—"

The other girl cut me off with a squeal so high-pitched that I had to cover my ears.

"Yuzu!" Ise scolded from the adjacent room. "No screeching. Use your words!"

The two girls collided with me, knocking me backwards. Across the room, Kushina was sending me a dirty look as I gaped from the lack of air and silently begged for her help.

"Do mine next!" Yuzu begged from my stomach. I complied, and a few minutes later, she had a matching braid and Fusō had come over to watch.

"Why didn't you ever do my hair like that?" Kushina demanded.

"You never asked," I answered honestly. "And I didn't think I could do it."

Kushina opened her mouth to respond when a knock sounded at the door. From Minato's expression, he obviously didn't recognize the person at the door. I was there in an instant, warily opening it, my hand over the seal that would immediately secure the house with a tiny pulse of chakra. It was unneeded as I recognized the ANBU Bird's chakra signature beneath a Henge of me. I quickly let him in as he dropped the Henge, closing the door behind the ANBU and ushering him into the living room before the rest of those assembled could get a good look. I scanned the seals around the door before finding the privacy one and activating it.

"Rat ordered me to report."

I nodded once and started to pull on my abandoned gear.

"While impersonating you, I calmed those taking refuge in headquarters until the situation settled enough for them to be escorted out by the retired shinobi. Those with Dōjutsus have remained inside of headquarters to recover from the attempt to steal their eyes. The elder Hyuuga is unable to walk due to injury that is threatening to become severe. He refuses to see a civilian doctor in the meantime and his injuries were beyond my abilities to heal. All Genin ordered to report to Interrogation have obeyed and wait in individual holding cells. Several civilian families unaffiliated with a clan have left. Four of the five Academy students with living parents unaffiliated with a clan have lost their parents in this exodus. In order to reduce the strain on the orphanages, the retired shinobi are taking in Academy students without parents. It is projected that those with specific attention will be up to an acceptable level to graduate to Genin in under a year. No children have been taken out of the village, but several have been found abandoned inside of it, though, from their stories, it sounds like they snuck away from their parents before they left. Those with the capacity to be shinobi have been given to retirees for training."

"So, basically you're saying we now have a split between ages in this village as well as professions."

Bird shifted uncomfortably. "Your analysis is correct."

"Brilliant, we now have a bunch of kids creating a political faction."

Bird snorted at the absurdity of the statement, but quickly regained professionalism. "Orders?"

"Meet me at interrogations after the Genin meeting."

Bird didn't move.

"Is there something else?"

"I'm ordered to remain with you for the next twenty-four hours."

"I'm assuming Rat's shift is over then."

Bird nodded and pulled back, disappearing completely as I readjusted to pouch of senbon on my thigh. I deactivated the security seal and jerked open the door to reveal Minato and Kushina huddled around it, trying to listen in.

"Both of you go get a report from the gates," I ordered, pushing through them and heading straight to door, donned my vest and haori.

"Is everything alright?" Fusō asked as the Genin slipped on their shoes and ran out without question.

"There's nothing immediately wrong," I answered. "Keep Nagato here for safety's sake, there's an active abduction order from Ame on his head and no available nin to guard him."

I waited just long enough to see Ise's acknowledgement before taking off towards headquarters. I nearly skewered myself on a kunai as I stepped inside the building. Without thinking, I cracked my stick across the person's wrist, forcing it to cross their body and followed up with a stunning blow to the back of their knee, and slamming the much larger kid against the wall as I recognized the Uchiha.

"Instead of unpleasantly announcing your presence before I'm even inside the door, it would be better to wait behind it and identify your opponent before you attack, Uchiha-san. Any other Chuunin would have killed first and asked questions second." I released him and he surveyed me with his Sharingan.

"You're the real one!" He gaped in surprise. "Someone's been impersonating you and—"

"I know, it was an ANBU. I needed rest, so someone took over the aftermath while I took it, good for noticing." I left him rubbing the back of his knee and shouldered open the door to where the Hyuugas were discussing something. "Hiashi-san, why did you refuse civilian treatment?"

"The clan policy—" Hiashi began.

"I don't care about your clan policy. Their treatment is just as good as an iryo-nin, even if it takes longer. I know you've been trained in fighting blind due to the risk that your exact situation may occur, as has your twin, so your career isn't over. Denying temporary treatment only lengthens your recovery time after you receive treatment. At the very least, the civilian doctors could have reconstructed your tendons in the time I was unavailable, which would have made my job much easier and much less time consuming."

I crouched down and started to unwrap the soiled bandages, my hand already glowing with chakra. In less than ten minutes, I had fully healed all but the superficial damage to the Hyuuga's ankles and wrapped that with clean bandages.

"Walk around and jump a few times," I ordered, backing up. Hiashi stood and took a few shaky steps, but the healing was successful. He successfully ran through a short kata. "Great. Obviously, all three of you are off the patrols around the village, but I'll find other things for you to do, for now, follow me." Without looking to see if they were following or not, I left headquarters and headed to the Academy auditorium. In the street, civilians skirted me, their heads down and faces flushed with shame. I didn't care about them as long as the problem was over.

The front of the Academy had been vandalized. I ignored it. It was one of the lowest priorities. Minato and Kushina landed in front of me.

"They said all the enemy Jōnin started to walk around the village at exactly noon and have made three circuits already. Otherwise, no change."

I nodded to him and marched inside the auditorium where the Genin were already gathered.


	27. Chapter 27

I stood in front of the assembly. A quick head count revealed there was only twenty-five Genin present, that would barely be enough to create the next shift. Three of those who would be put on shift would be slightly injured. I wasn't comfortable with it, but I couldn't put Hiashi on shift, for obvious reasons, and Hizashi and the Uchiha had an active threat against them, so now that I was capable of something, they needed to stay near me. The four of us would probably make the strongest team the village had to offer, so moving as a unit would probably be best. Minato would have to tough out the pain running a patrol would undoubtedly cause. The other two should have been fine, it was only scrapes and bruises from a spar gone bad several days ago. I could heal the injuries, but it wasn't worth the energy.

"Congrats, you're all on shift for the night," I informed them dryly. "The Kiri Jōnin are attempting an intimidation tactic by walking around the village. Do not engage. If they attack, which is unlikely at this point, or reinforcements for them arrive, sound the alarm and fall back. It is vital that if the alarm sounds, you get onto or inside the walls as fast as possible. You will have five seconds from the time the alarm begins or you will be trapped outside. No one, and I mean no one, is to sound any alarm unless the Jōnin are already inside of the village or one of you is dead. Do I make myself clear? The contingency that is in place will only work once. Once that contingency is in place, this village is as good as lost unless several Konoha teams return and are able to fight them off, even though there will be absolutely no way to contact anyone outside the village." That was a bit of an exaggeration, but if I had to put up the seals, we would be cut off completely from the rest of the Konoha forces, basically placing ourselves under siege, which was decidedly _not good_ , unless Kiri actually put us under siege, then it would be _even worse_. If I took down the seals after putting them up the first time, Kiri would no doubt take full advantage of the opportunity and actually attack the village.

Minato raised a hand. "What's the contingency?"

"It doesn't matter, so leave it be and just follow orders."

"Does it have to do with—"

"Minato!" I barked harshly. "Loose lips sink ships. Leave it be." That was actually more accurate than I expected it to be, with the fight in Water country going on and the Kiri shinobi at our gates. "Everyone but Uchiha-san and the Hyuuga twins are dismissed."

The Genin left in a hurry.

"Hiashi-san, I want you practicing your Taijutsu with Uchiha-san. Be careful to avoid injuries. Hizashi-san, you're with me."

"Shouldn't I practice with—" Hizashi began.

"No, you both use the same style and know each other too well. If Hiashi-san has to fight, it won't be against people he's familiar with."

I turned on my heel and strode out of the room. I needed to get the rest of the Genin back on duty as fast as possible. I leapt onto the rooftops and dashed to the Interrogation department. The Chuunin working scowled at me, but pointed to the row of cells the Genin probably were. "We're not wasting any manpower on them," he informed me.

"I never expected you to." I made my way into the first cell and jerked it open. It wasn't even locked. The Genin inside sat on a metal bed, knees pulled up to his chest. I closed the cell door behind me, leaving Hizashi standing outside. "Why?" I asked the Genin.

"It wasn't right."

"To disobey a direct order? No, that wasn't right."

"They were shouting and screaming and there were too many—"

"So, shouting and screaming back was going to solve it? No, it wouldn't it would only make things worse. Instead of being the better person, you lowered yourself to their level. It wasn't about shinobi versus civilians out there, it was about who gave in to fear and panic first."

"But—"

"I ordered you to stand down for a very good reason. Unless you can give me a very good reason as to why you decided to disobey a direct order, I will have you punished."

He curled in on himself. "I thought it was the right thing to do."

"So, does that make you the ultimate authority?"

"No."

"I didn't think so. Do you have any better defense?"

He shook his head.

"You know the Konoha sign language, correct?"

He nodded.

"Lie down and don't move," I ordered, reaching into my supply pouch and stepping forward.

He hesitated for a minute, but knew better than to disobey. With swift movements, I painted a seal on his throat and activated it.

I took a step back. "Communication is a privilege. The seal will prevent you from communicating with anyone and you are not to use the sign language for anything but the communication necessary to complete your duties." I opened the door.

'How long?' He signed to me.

Faster than he could track, I grabbed his fingers and twisted them painfully before violently slamming him against the nearest wall. "That's your second strike, Genin." If he had been able to make a noise, he would have screaming as I painfully twisted his arms in a direction they were not supposed to go. "Don't test me again." I shoved him out of the cell and he scampered off, shaken, but unharmed.

I was extremely grateful that the rest of the encounters with the insubordinate Genin went similarly. It was nearly ten at night when I shoved the last Genin out of their cell.

"You're too soft," Hizashi said as the last one disappeared.

"Probably, but my sensei put that same seal on me when I mouthed off to him one too many times. They're not going to forget the lesson."

"What lesson?" The Hyuuga scoffed.

"Disobeying orders is a Very Bad Idea."

"You all but gave us permission to challenge your orders on the first day."

"Challenge them, yes, if you have a better idea. I never gave anyone permission to disobey or disregard them. Even I know better than that."

"You're too soft. You shouldn't have allowed even that."

"If I didn't, I'd be a giant hypocrite."

"You've challenged orders?"

"I'm not proud of it, but yes."

"I heard you talked back to a Kage too. I'd like to hear that story." Hizashi nudged as we leaned against the desk which the disgruntled Chuunin vacated when I started releasing the Genin.

"Okay, um, which time?"

"You've talked back to a Kage more than once?"

"I talk back to everyone I know."

"How are you still alive?"

"I'm a Jinchuuriki and a medic, I get a lot of leeway no one else does. I never made it out of those encounters unscathed, and you could make the argument that I might have been better off dead."

"Okay then, what was the first time? What happened?"

"Ha, that time, I got the Kyuubi sealed inside of me for it and started the war with Kumo. I'm pretty sure the actual conversation is extremely classified."

"Then what about the second time?"

"Pretty much every time I've challenge a Kage, the conversation ends up classified."

"You're no fun."

"Good for me." I stood up and started to walk out.

We plodded down the nearly-empty main street of the village. We were nearly to headquarters when a flustered Genin appeared, barreling towards us. "They're doing something; we don't know what it is and they said to get you—" the Genin panted. I immediately took off towards the wall in a shunshin. Going down a straight street was much easier than travelling across rooftops and around corners in a shunshin. I stumbled out of it, overshooting slightly and landing a few feet in front of the terrified group of Genin trying to stare down the Seven Swordsmen of Kiri. I tried to brush the slip-up off as intentional.

"Hello, I was told I was needed here?" I greeted pleasantly.

"Your Hokage must be quite the idiot to put a child in charge," the apparent spokesman of the group took a step forward so there was only the thickness of the village walls between us.

"I agree, but it couldn't be helped." I shrugged as the swordsman in front of me balanced his blade, which looked like Samehada, across his shoulders like a yoke. He reminded me of an Akimichi, positively huge, with paint on his face and a girth that wouldn't fit through most doors.

"Are you sure you can see me from down there, little medic?"

"Fuguki-san, is it?" I asked. He sneered at me but nodded when I got the name right. "With all due respect, may I ask you a question?"

He gestured for me to continue.

I opened my mouth to ask my question. "Uzumaki-sama!" I heard Mayu call out. A few seconds later, she landed beside me and handed me a scroll.

"Thank you," I told her politely and she quickly melted into the ranks of Genin. "This isn't my question, but do you mind if I read this message?"

"Go ahead," he invited amicably.

"Let it not be said Kirigakure has no manners." I bowed shallowly and opened the scroll, quickly deciphering the contents. "Well, this is insulting!" I exclaimed with mock horror.

The enemy nin in front of me started to snicker. "I'm sure you mother will reassure you later, little boy." One grumbled.

"Oh, it's not insulting to me, it's insulting you, Fuguki-san!"

The snickers immediately turned to growls.

"According to Shimura-san, he's the man in charge of the Konoha forces opposing Kiri," I explained, "He asks me to send his regards to you for the information which led to the capture of several Kirigakure Jōnin. I do believe Shimura-san is calling you a traitor, but don't murder the messenger!"

One of the others laughed loudly and pushed his way to the front. "I have to give it to you, kid, you are one clever bastard, but you can't turn our forces against each other so easily." Black hair framed his face, and if it wasn't for his disturbingly deep voice, he could have passed as a kunoichi.

"I'm sorry, I haven't properly memorized the Kirigakure entries in the Bingo book yet, I am only a kid."

"Yuki Usui," he introduced himself with a dramatic bow.

"Nice to meet you, I'm Uzumaki Kichiro."

"Ah, Konoha's Spirit of the Triage, the first male medic-nin. Sounds like a girly profession to go into, kid."

"You sound a little jealous of something a baby kunoichi can do better than you."

One of the swordsmen erupted in a high-pitched laugh. "The kid got you there, Yuki. How does it feel to be embarrassed by a six-year-old?" A small woman stepped forward. Her hair stuck up in a way that reminded me of the Kyuubi's ears. I bit back that comment. Announcing I was a Jinchuuriki wouldn't be very smart, especially since I was nearly certain Kiri didn't know that particular detail.

"Kunoichi-san?" I interrupted Yuki's response.

"What is it, clever kid?"

"I'm nine."

"You're a smart ass," she deadpanned.

"Guilty as charged," I mimicked the Yuki's bow. His killing intent washed over me, but I'd faced the Kyuubi's ire without flinching, I could take his annoyance. "So, are we done mocking each other? I think it's only polite of me to ask why you're here. I wouldn't want to come to the wrong conclusion and end up in a giant fight that could be completely avoided because I'm going to be the one cleaning up the injuries afterwards. Or we could pause this conversation. I've been told you've been walking a good portion of the day and I know very well how tiring it can be. Being a kid and all, I get naps even though adults don't." I suppressed a wince. I might have gone a little too far on that one.

"He's insane," squeaked one of the Genin behind me. I sent a sharp look over my shoulder at the Genin who couldn't keep their mouth closed. The whole point of drawing their ire was so they wouldn't care about the others. At the second interruption, I wasn't sure that plan would work so I changed tactics.

"I think you're right, little Genin," the kunoichi stage-whispered.

"Okay," I drew the attention back to myself. "I'm really asking right now. Why are you here?"

"We were hoping we could speak with your Kage." Fuguki was back in charge. He lifted Samehada off his shoulders and leveled it at me.

"He's honestly not here. He left a little more than a day ago."

"Bring me the person in charge."

"I am in charge. Not even the Daimyō is messing with my authority anymore."

"Then bring me an adult—"

"I am an adult. Clan head and everything! Can I hold your sword? Please? Can it cut through things as easily as it steals chakra? It doesn't look sharp, but I know better than to only trust my eyes."

"Boy—"

"Okay, fine, I can be serious. Big grumpy Kichiro coming right up." I put my hands on my hips and puffed out my chest. "Hello Mister Fuguki-san! What can I do for you this very late evening?"

The other swordsmen, and swordswoman, suppressed snorts of laughter. I didn't expect Kiri ninja to have a sense of humor, but whatever worked, worked. Even the Genin giggled behind me, but it was immediately silenced as killing intent washed over them.

I relaxed and let my tone turn serious. "I really am in charge and I would really like to know what you want to avoid a fight if I can."

"Kirigakure wishes to end this war by taking control of Konoha and thus forcing your forces to surrender."

"Then go ahead and take the village," I stepped aside and gestured them in while the Genin stared at me, horrified.

Fearful of a trap, none of them moved and I retook my position, struggling not to cough at the tickle in my chest.

"Even if you take the village, it won't do you much good. You see, Konoha is practically empty right now, there's only Genin. Except me, I'm a Chuunin, so is the girl who delivered the insulting message from Shimura-san, but really, there's no one of value here. Well, I suppose that's not entirely true, the Daimyō's here, but right now, people don't really like him and if you want to kill him, I can show you where he's staying!" I had a feeling my bluff was only beginning.

"You have a point there, kid." Fuguki said sneering. "But someone's put a lot of trust in you, so I'm pretty sure you would make a good bartering piece."

"I'm sure Suna would pay handsomely for me considering I totally humiliated their best poison experts. Iwa probably wants to get me back for supposedly raising a bunch of people from the dead, even though they just didn't do their job. As for the Hokage, I'll let you in on a little secret. He doesn't particularly like me, and I'm pretty sure Shimura-san is out to get me."

Poor swordsman, he wasn't exactly sure what to do with that information, especially since they couldn't tell if I was lying or telling the truth or even if my information was accurate.

Considering Kushina looked absolutely horrified as she hung back in the crowd of Genin with a Henge to hide her hair color, I was doing a good job of convincing people. Between her and Minato, they knew all of my tells, and they were convinced. A bunch of strangers stood no chance.

Fuguki took a step back. "The Hokage left Konoha as the decoy, with just enough imbeciles to cause trouble, while he set up base elsewhere. Risky move, but smart."

"Well, the fact that he dumped me here with no idea what to do makes a ton more sense now."

"What do you know about Fūinjutsu, little Uzumaki?"

"Kiri destroyed Uzushiogakure, so it's not like I have access to any kind of legacy. I know standard explosive tags and stuff, but my sensei didn't have time to teach me more before the war started."

"This place isn't worth our time," Fuguki grumbled.

"Hey, I find that personally insulting! We have a decent tourist and traveler's resorts that would love a bit of business. The onsen here are pretty sweet if you want to try it out!"

"They don't stand a snowball's chance in hell against us. We might as well enjoy ourselves," the Yuki said.

The hell? They were actually considering stepping onto the village? I mentally ran through the seals I knew that could contain them in a single building, if I could manage it. I bounced on my toes, my hands behind my back, appearing as if I was waiting eagerly for their decision while I signed to the Genin to get the hell out of Dodge. If this backfired, it wasn't going to be pretty.

"We deserve time at the onsen and a bed for once!"

I glanced behind me and saw the Genin's faces switch to terror. Several fled and the rest slowly backed away as if they were facing a pack of rabid dogs. "This way!" I chirped, leading them to the closest hotel. When the civilian owners saw us coming, they fled, as well as the handful of patrons woken by the commotion.

I bowed deeply and ushered them inside. A moment too late, they realized the trap. "Uzumaki!" Fuguki bellowed as I slammed a seal against the door frame. The walls, roof, and floorboards started to glow with a quarantine seal. No one was getting out of that building.

"I guess quarantine isn't much different than prison. Damn, that seal took a lot of chakra."

The Genin and gathering audience gaped as the hotel rattled with angry Kiri nin.

"You are going to pay dearly for this, Uzumaki," the kunoichi pushed her way forward to stand in front of me.

"Yes, yes, I probably am going to pay for it. In fact, I think I'm suffering from a very serious case of chakra exhaustion. Sensei is going to beat me silly for it."

As everyone started to realize exactly what happened, the cheering started.

"Eventually, I swear, someone is going to figure out how to not underestimate me."

"You're a bastard, Uzumaki."

"You know, I'd be more inclined to believe you if I wasn't looking at an overconfident, hedonistic group of individuals who is supposed to be one of the strongest teams in the shinobi nations. Come to think about it, you were just taken down by a nine-year-old Chuunin's medic technique. I don't envy trying to live that down. I think I'm going to pass out soon, someone catch me please." I staggered to the side and suddenly Kushina was there, putting my arm around her shoulders. "I am feeling really, really awful. Be a dear and put up a bunch of those fancy chakra-specific seals and tie them to a bunch of people so no one can free them by themselves. Preferably use people with Kekkei Genkai so the signature can't be copied."

Kushina passed me off to someone else and got to work. After some indeterminate time, Kushina finished and someone placed my hand against the seal.

"That is some damn fine Fūinjutsu," one of the swordsmen commented, but I didn't see which.

Kushina ignored them. "You're in charge, so you gotta be one of the people who has the key."

"I'm out, peeps," I said as I used the last of the chakra keeping me conscious to lock the seal.

(-_-)

"Hey kiddo, we were getting worried there, you've been out for almost a week," Ise's voice cut through the haze that left me suspended in a half-asleep state.

"I don't feel too good," I wheezed and pushed the damp cloth off my forehead. I hated damp hair more than I hated the heat from a fever. Trying to sit up was an ordeal, especially when Ise held me down easily.

"You still are very sick, kiddo. You were barely breathing for several days and your fever still hasn't broken."

"Wait, I was out for a week? What did I miss?" I pushed the frustration of only being able to say two or three words every few breaths.

"Well, congratulations, you've been instrumental in ending another war. The Mizukage preferred to have his Swordsmen and their swords returned rather than continue the war. Kumo and Konoha are splitting the reparations won from the Land of Water, though not very evenly."

I rubbed my eyes, trying to clear the grit that glued them shut. "Who's in charge of the village?"

"Shimura-sama returned three days after you successfully trapped the Seven in that hotel. While you were incapacitated, he took control of the village. Two days ago, your condition degenerated to the point that the silencing seals on the insubordinate Genin failed as well as the quarantine seal. Thankfully, Shimura-sama put up real prisoner containment seals as soon he was informed of your poor condition."

"And the Hokage?"

"There has been no news from the Iwa front."

"A very bad thing?"

"I believe so, Shimura-sama wished to meet with you as soon as you were conscious."

I groaned. "What does he need me for?"

"I don't know, but apparently its urgent, he'll be here soon."

"Someone—" I started to cough wetly. Ise quickly rolled me onto my side and pressed a cloth over my mouth. I took the cloth from his hand as the coughs wracked my entire body. When I pulled the cloth away, there was a sizable glob of yellowish mucus. "How in the nine circles of hell did I get a lung infection?" I demanded weakly as Ise wrapped the cloth in another and carried it away.

"I'm not exactly sure, kiddo, but Shimura-sama will be here soon."

"I hate this." A knock sounded at the door.

"Come in," Ise responded. The door opened slowly to reveal Danzō in the Jōnin uniform.

"Uzumaki-san," he greeted quietly.

I pushed myself into a mock-sitting position. Ise stood up and quickly left the room before Danzō could say anything. "Don't you have a village I screwed up to fix?" I asked as scathingly as I could manage. He sat down in the chair without a word. "Stop being creepy, what the hell do you want?"

He held up my mission scroll and placed it in my lap. "Open it."

"Screw that shit, I'm not in charge anymore." I was surprised he didn't cut off my incredibly slow speech in frustration.

"The Iwa-Ame alliance defeated the Konoha forces the day before the Hokage arrived on the front. He walked into a trap." I expected him to at least be patronizing, maybe even cruel, but he just seemed tired.

"I can barely breathe and I can't even defend myself, the hell can I do about it?"

"Open the scroll."

"Why?"

"I need to confirm something."

The man seemed like he was about to snap from stress. Not snap the violent, explosive way, but the sad way that left people a shadow of themselves. He was all but begging me, something I did not expect from him of all people. My fingers didn't respond as they were supposed to while I struggled to unroll it, but eventually I managed. My head swam afterwards as Danzō picked it up and read it, sagging in relief. "I don't want to know whatever the hell got you worked up. Please tell me that was all you needed."

"I'm sorry, kid, but there's a few more things. Iwa has officially won the war and they are escorting those they captured back to Konoha to make their demands. The majority of the troops are under orders to scatter and return in a few weeks. The Hokage has refused to give any other details, but included orders to fake your death. Except for myself, Uzumaki-san, and two ANBU who can be trusted without reservation, everyone is under the impression that your condition is continuing to degenerate from an unknown illness, which is mostly true, none of the doctors have been able to figure out your illness and you are not out of danger yet."

I rolled my eyes, but before I could respond, another coughing fit wracked my body. Danzō pressed a clean cloth against my mouth and quickly helped me roll onto my side. When the fit subsided, Danzō tucked the soiled cloth away in a cloth bag that dangled from the bedside table. "Make sure you wash your hands once you leave," I advised. "And I'm not going to die from this. Give me two weeks and I'll be back to normal, there's just a bunch of fluid in my lungs. It'll clear in time."

"You know of this illness?"

"Yes, I'm calling it pneumonia."

"That's hardly comforting. There is still the matter of faking your death."

"Do what you want, I can't stop you. I'm going to be laid up for several more days. If you want it to be convincing, have three or four of the other Uzumaki kids fall ill as well, but make sure Kushina and Nagato are among them, they're going to be major targets if I'm supposedly taken out of the picture and you'll need to have them under wraps where they can be protected."

"Why must the ruse be expanded?"

"Because no one challenges a tragedy. I've caused too many problems for too many people. They'll want irrefutable confirmation of my death, like a body, that you won't be able to produce. Just do it, and you might want to have one of them 'fall ill' very soon, otherwise it won't—" I broke off in an increasingly violent coughing fit.

When it was over, Danzō looked even more shaken than before. "I'm recalling Tsunade-chan and Biwako-san. You're really going to die at this rate."

"Stop!" I wheezed, barely catching his sleeve as he tried to sweep out of the room. "If you bring either of them back, they're as good as dead, considering they're the two closest people to the Hokage. I'll be fine, I promise. It sounds a lot worse than it actually is. If worst comes to worst, I can direct a medic to treat it, but that's a last resort."

"Boy!" Danzō snarled at me, his temper exploding without warning. "Until I, the only fit individual of this village's council, can be sure no one is pulling Hiruzen's strings, you are the ultimate power of this village, bedridden or not, and if you are dead, there's no wriggling out of whatever treaty Iwa forces us to sign. Normally, the cornerstone of this village numbers nearly five hundred solid A-ranked Jōnin at any given time. Right now, there are five shinobi in this village capable of fighting at an A level—"

"Little old me bluffed the Seven Swordsmen into cornering themselves in a civilian hotel for heaven's sake."

"And look where that put you."

"This is a total fluke and bad luck in my part, I swear."

He eyed me dubiously.

"How did you get all this information and orders anyways, especially since the Hokage is apparently captured?"

"Hatake-san and another individual have learned some bad habits from you and have been doing their best to exchange information. However, Iwa is taking no chances with a Kage as their prisoner, and Hatake doesn't work miracles."

"Why is the Hokage ordering you to fake my death?"

"That is unknown."

"Then we're not going to, because if Iwa wants something to do with me, it'll only cause problems later when they find out they were tricked. If it was that important to deny them access to me, he would have just ordered my death."

"You shouldn't—"

"My life, my call."

"You can't just take orders for once in your life?"

"No, I can't. Sick or not, there's no reason for me to fake-die."

"That you know of—"

"I'll take my chances."

"You're not seeing sense—"

"No, you're emotionally compromised and too hung up on tricking Iwa into making an invalid agreement. We still have their people prisoner and we have better sealing techniques—"

"Fūinjutsu is not a cure-all."

"No, but it gives us leverage to make the terms more favorable. How long until they get here?"

"A few days."

"Then find my sister or someone else who knows seals and secure anything or anyone Iwa would want, and attach it to a dead-man's seal. Put it on the ground just inside the front gate and make it visible. They'll push the Hokage into a supposed trap first and he'll activate the switch. Bam, bargaining power."

"And if it doesn't work?"

"Iwa's won and we accept that. There's no reason to be a sore loser. We held them off for this entire war with a quarter of the troops they have. That's a damn good accomplishment."

"This isn't a playground, there is no sportsmanship."

"Really? In comparison to the other countries, what's our death toll? Because of our medics, we'll be able to recover a good majority of our injured. The other countries won't. We'll be back to full strength before anyone else because we have a large group of younger nin who, with training, can step up and take the slack." I had more to say, but it was cut off by the worst coughing fit so far.

"You need help, boy—"

"No!" I gasped. "Play the long-term game. A bruised pride and a little strategic kowtowing will be much less damaging than broken agreements, you know this."

"Have you no pride?"

I laughed weakly. "I have pride and arrogance by the _truckload_ old man, but I also have people I care about. It's not about being stronger. I don't care whether people know when I'm running circles around them, I'm just content knowing I am. Iwa didn't win this war, they kicked us while we were down. That's not a victory, and we know it. Right now, we might have all the strength of a toddler with candy. They can steal the candy and knock us down, but they don't know it was just cardboard or that the tears are fake until everything is all said and done."

"Again, this isn't some schoolyard fight—"

"That's where you're wrong. People don't grow up, Shimura-san. The words change and their actions have a bigger effect, but it's still the same fights. Suna wanted Konoha's candy, so Suna started the fight, then Kumo wanted a different piece of candy from Konoha, so they started a fight. Iwa had a grudge because it didn't get Konoha's candy last time, so they wanted it this time. Kiri wanted to share candy with Konoha, but Konoha was mad because they smashed their candy earlier, so Kiri decided to team up with Suna because they thought Konoha was being mean. Konoha took Suna, Kiri, and Kumo's candy, but Iwa whacked them from behind and took that candy for themselves. Konoha is going to be smarter than Iwa and hide their candy then leave Iwa to take the candy Konoha stole from everyone else. End of story."

"You have a strange way of looking at things."

"Kids find the adult's fights just as silly as the adults find the children's squabbling, they just can't articulate it. The only difference is that the adults' fights are dangerous and they have no one to slap them on the wrist and say 'enough'."

He started to respond, but another coughing fit took over me.

"You need to rest," He told me when I didn't immediately roll onto my back. "I cannot in good conscience ignore the Hokage's order, but I will compromise with your point of view. I will make it appear as if I am covering up your death.

"A double bluff. Nice."


	28. Chapter 28 - Part 5

A few minutes after Danzō left, Ise returned and started to take my vitals.

"I leave for half an hour and you nearly suffocate yourself trying to speak," Ise grumbled. "Since you apparently have the best idea of what's wrong, I'd welcome your opinion."

I opened my mouth to speak, but Ise held up a hand.

"No, your lips are already blue and your fever is nearly dangerous. Write it down."

He held up a piece of paper and a pencil. It didn't take much effort for him to help maneuver me into a position where I could use the bedside table to scribble down everything I could remember about treating lung infections.

"You seem to know exactly what to do."

I shrugged and collapsed back, completely exhausted. I missed some time, because the next thing I knew, I was being sat up and a glass of cool water was being held to my lips. It burned on the way down and tasted like dirt, but I didn't care, I was thirstier than I expected. I passed out after I finished the glass.

(-_-)

I didn't bother trying to fully wake up whenever Ise dragged me into some semblance of cognition and persuaded me to breathe deeply and cough out as much of the gunk in my lungs as I could. When his voice changed to someone else's urgent tone, I dragged myself into full wakefulness and punched at the face that was certainly not Ise. Whoever it was knocked the swing to the side.

They said something, pressing a hand over my mouth to keep me from shouting and pinned me down. I tried to suck in air through my nose, but at some point while I slept, my nose had clogged. They hissed in my ear as I tried to kick at the person holding me down, but it had no effect. Blood pounded through my head drowning out their words. The person lifted their hand, and I immediately turned my head to the side and coughed violently while medical chakra rushed through my body, an unfamiliar brown-haired woman leaning over me.

While she spoke unintelligibly, I caught sight of Ise slumped in his chair, automatically starting to thrash and struggle while they held me down. My hand closed around the pencil beneath my pillow. I used it to channel chakra in the form of a scalpel before slashing at the person nearest my hand. They muffled a yelp as the blade sunk into their hip and would have kept going through their body if they hadn't slapped my hand away with enough force to break my thumb and probably fracture several carpals. I wanted to scream with pain and try and draw someone's attention, but I couldn't spare the air as I forced myself to breathe evenly.

"Calm down, Kichiro!" The man hissed, his hand closing around my injured one and squeezing. Pain shot up my arm. "It's me, Sakumo!"

His face hovered above mine, but I couldn't make out any details beyond white hair. I would have stopped struggling, but their weight on my torso made it impossible for me to breathe.

"What's wrong with him?" Sakumo demanded and medical chakra flooded my body again.

"He's suffocating!" The woman finally figured out and instantly, the weight was gone, but her hand remained on my chest, forcing my lungs to painfully expand and contract.

"Stop!" I managed after a few forced breaths and she immediately pulled her hand away so I could grab the folded cloth in the bedside table and cough up whatever was dislodged in my lungs during the struggle. It was far longer and more painful than any previous coughing fit. Halfway through, the woman switched the soiled cloth with a clean one. When the fit subsided, I rubbed my eyes until they were clear and glared up at the white-haired man hovering worriedly. It only took me a second to recognize Sakumo. "The hell?" I wheezed. "What did you do to him?" I demanded, pointing at Ise. At least I could speak in full sentences until my lungs started to fill again. My chest ached from coughing. I curled around my broken hand, not listening for the answer. For my age and rank, I had a decent pain tolerance, but I was too overwhelmed by the massive amount of input flooding into my brain and didn't even want to try to process it.

"Wake the man up, Hatake," the woman ordered, "Kichiro-kun will take far too long to calm down otherwise." A few murmured words later, Ise sat down beside me and pulled me into his lap.

I re-centered myself by listening to Ise's steady heartbeat, leaving him to do the talking.

"Iwa will arrive in four days and they've already formulated their list of demands as well as drawn up a treaty which they will undoubtedly force the Hokage to sign," Sakumo began. The woman carefully extricated my hand and began to heal it.

"With all due respect, Hatake-san, I don't believe I should be privy to this information," Ise said.

"Probably not, Uzumaki-san, but this concerns Kichiro and you have a right to know. Before I continue, I need both of you to understand that if anyone outside this room knows Biwako-sama and I were here, our lives are forfeit. That being said, Iwa's terms have already been decided. I took the liberty of memorizing their list. It was unexpectedly short, and very revealing. Along with the usual payments and shift of clientele and trade balance, Iwa added several additional demands. In an attempt to ensure that it will be a long time before Konoha will be able to challenge Iwa again, they have named several children of influential village leaders to be delivered as hostages. Namely, the primary heir of each the Uchiha, Hyuuga, Aburame, and Akimichi clans, as well as the last surviving child of the Senju clan and the Hokage's son."

"The clans would never stand for that!" Ise exclaimed.

"Considering each of those clan heads is currently Iwa's hostage, their choice is to comply or die. The Hokage has no choice but to order them to comply, otherwise they will lose a half-dozen high-level Jōnin as well as a handful of Genin. Alongside the return of prisoners, Iwa has demanded that Kichiro be handed over as a prisoner of war."

I stiffened and Ise's arms tightened around me.

"You know as well as I what they do to those people," Ise growled. "And of the nations, they have the worst treatment of Jinchuuriki, second only to Suna."

"If the Yamanaka does their job properly, Iwa will never know Kichiro contains the Kyuubi. Medics are extremely valuable, they won't torture the boy, if anything, they'll force him to either teach his techniques to their medics and Fūinjutsu experts or make him do the work himself."

That did not placate Ise the slightest.

"The Hokage hasn't made his decision yet, but he will most likely concede so long as Iwa promises to treat their prisoners fairly and provides a set amount of time the heirs and Kichiro will be held."

Everything seemed to go cold. "He's your student, Hatake! How dare you even think—Chuunin or not, the boy is _nine_! You know him, you've taught him! He's not a fighter—he doesn't deserve that!"

"No, the child doesn't deserve it, but there's nothing that can be done, short of kidnapping him and forcing him into the life of a missing-nin as my hostage instead, a path that will only end with him recaptured."

"Stop—" I croaked, coughing weakly. "Tell the Hokage I'll agree to the demand as long as there are no other prisoners on either side. The average length of prisoner of war internments is seven years. I will cooperate with Iwa for that time, no longer. If those terms are not met, it doesn't matter how much pain he causes me, I will not go. I will fight the order with everything I have."

I didn't look at Sakumo, I just stared straight ahead, trying to ignore my own trembling.

"Kichiro—" Sakumo said, but broke off, reaching into his pouch and pulling out a scroll and held it out.

Gingerly, I took it and opened it. Though I had never seen one before, I immediately recognized it as a summoning scroll. My eyes widened in shock.

"My summons fight, they hunt, and I know you wouldn't appreciate it, so I found another contract for you."

The scroll was blank, no one had signed.

"You can use your chakra, right? Do you have enough for a summoning?"

I nodded and held tight to Ise's knee to lower myself to the ground. It wasn't exactly safe to attempt a new jutsu while touching other people.

Sakumo rattled off the hand seals and a brief description of how it was supposed to work. I signed the scroll and made the hand signs, channeling as much chakra as I could into the technique while remaining mostly functional.

A small bird appeared flying directly at me. I yelped, but it banked at the last second, orbiting my head twice at an insane speed, creating a blur of grey across my vision, before landing on the hand I belatedly brought up to shield my face. Its claws dug into the skin, drawing blood. The white stripe beneath each of its wings was shaped like an hourglass, which I found extremely interesting. It studied me closely with a beady, gold-rimmed eye.

"A _mockingbird_?" I breathed. I hadn't seen one since I left my old world.

"Greetings young one," the bird trilled.

"Hi."

The bird pecked at the inside of my wrist, drawing blood.

When I realized what it was about to do, I jerked. "I wouldn't—" I began, but the bird licked at the welling blood. I stemmed the flow with my thumb, careful not to jostle the bird's perch.

"You're quite sick," the bird commented.

"Yes," I responded dipping into my dangerously low chakra to heal the wound before whatever nasties the bird picked up could infect it.

"It was stupid for you to attempt a summoning in your condition."

"Not really."

The bird's head tipped to the side. "Did you just contradict me?"

"No, I mitigated your statement."

The bird eyed me carefully. "Most who attempt to summon us grovel."

"Forgive me, but I won't grovel for someone's approval."

"I am Kanon."

"Kichiro."

"I would like to know how you recognize my kind."

"That is a very long story I don't have the breath to share."

" _Curious…curious._ "

"What did you just say?" I asked, not sure if I heard the bird speaking English.

" _Big Brother is watching you._ " The bird taunted and vanished in a puff of smoke.

" _That wasn't funny,_ " I shivered.

"Kichiro?" Sakumo asked kneeling down beside me.

" _What does buying a wand and anti-totalitarianism have to do with each other?_ " I asked the air.

Sakumo helped me onto the bed while I pondered the question.

"That was a little creepy, but otherwise I think it went well," I smiled as I sat down. As if to prove me wrong, it initiated another coughing fit.

"Will they approve the contract?" Sakumo asked.

"Most likely, but I think I picked up a stalker in the meantime."

"What?" He deadpanned.

" _Harry Potter_ and _1984_ ," I explained. It took me a long second to realize he couldn't know what I was referring to. "Sorry, they're stories I read."

Sakumo rolled his eyes and I flopped back onto the bed. The motion was a big mistake. It dislodged a piece of the gunk in my lungs and I was rolling over to cough a second later, taking the cloth offered to me by unseen hands.

When I finished, I rolled onto my back. "I hate being sick," I moaned.

The woman's chakra cautiously examined my lungs and air passages. "I might be able to draw out the congestion like a poison, but it might be too thick."

"I'd welcome you to try, but not unless you can prove to me you won't collapse my lung in the process, because I won't survive that."

"You won't survive this illness."

"Why won't anyone believe me when I say I'm going to be fine?" I demanded half-heartedly and tightened my grip on whoever was holding my hand. _She caught pneumonia once and the worst of it had passed within a few days._ I wasn't so sure of my survival anymore, since, according to Ise, I had been this bad for close to a week. Maybe it was Plague. That was a scary thought and I forced it out of my mind. There was absolutely nothing I could do about it anyways.

"Someone has to balance out your ridiculous optimism and it's your fault it takes everyone else to do so." Sakumo snapped back.

I started to laugh, but quickly remembered why that was a Very Bad Idea when it turned into a hacking cough.

"May I talk to my student alone for a minute?" Sakumo asked softly. The others respectfully cleared the room. As soon as the door closed behind Ise, Sakumo fell heavily to his knees beside my bed.

"That summon was supposed to be a songbird," he began with false lightheartedness.

"It is. It's just a songbird from my world."

"Songbirds don't speak your crazy language."

"Katō Dan speaks my 'crazy language' and he's legit, so it's not crazy."

"He died two weeks ago when Iwa surprised a routine patrol."

It took a long time for that to sink in. "Who else is dead?" I croaked.

"Takumi died in that same attack, and Shimizu hasn't contacted since he left to infiltrate Ame, he is presumed dead. Inuzuka died from injuries in Kiri."

"The whole team—" I choked.

"While you were in Kumo, the Hokage's students faced off against Hanzō the Salamander. No one has heard from them since. At best, they're hiding in Ame, recovering, at worst they've been taken hostage."

"Anyone else?" I figured there was an off-chance Jiraiya picked up Yahiko and Konan, though he likely wouldn't teach them anything shinobi-related without Nagato and his Rinnegan to tip the scales.

"I don't know, everyone is too scattered and the Jōnin communications have been compromised."

"You're going back out there."

"I have to do what I can. I only came here to pass information, give you that summoning scroll I found, and see if Biwako-sama could help you."

"So, I'm not going to see you again for awhile?"

"I respect your decision, but you have no idea what it's going to be like in Iwa."

"No, I probably don't, but I don't exactly have a choice, either. At least it will be on my terms and it will be my decision. Thank you for telling me."

"You shouldn't even be involved—"

"I've been involved since I grabbed those kids in Uzu and ran. I've been involved since I was sitting in that gorram boat trying to unlock my chakra and drive the boat to shore."

"I owe it to you, Kichiro, to at least offer to hide you until this is over. You've paid any debt you may have to this village several times over. There's an order of priestesses not far from here that are willing to take you in until you turn sixteen. We both know the Hokage won't come after you for it."

It was a tempting offer, but I knew it would be wrong to accept, even if it had been passively approved. I opened my mouth to say no, but Sakumo held up a hand.

"Look, I know you see yourself as an adult, and you probably are, mentally. What you don't seem to understand is that all the maturity and intellect you have was gained in an entirely different world, culture, and language. Then, you might have technically been a soldier, but you lived a civilian life. You had a foot in both worlds. You can manage your finances, feed yourself, entertain yourself, but there's a hell of a lot more and less to the life of a combatant."

"I don't want to hear this—"

"You're going to listen. I don't care how old and wise you think you are, you're just arrogant, bitter, and naïve, Kichiro. In your world, the atrocities committed were atrocities. Here, they are a part of everyday life and you just don't understand that."

I sat up and turned my back on him. "Please leave."

"As you like to say, make me." He waited for me to try, but I didn't move. Even healthy and at full strength, I couldn't force Sakumo into anything he didn't want to do.

"You're trying to scare me into backing down. It's not going to work."

"You're right, if the Hokage can't intimidate you with that seal, I'm not going to stand a chance, but I can humble you and try to persuade you to change your mind." I felt him sit down on the other side. "Maybe you've figured it out, maybe you haven't, but a lot of people monitored your training. Your sister was placed in classes and with a sensei that would help her become a powerful frontline fighter. With her chakra reserves, she'll be an impressive Ninjutsu specialist. With that genius Namikaze at her side, they'll be ridiculously strong, given a few years. Within the first few months at the Academy, her specialization was already decided. Yours was decided the second you were apprenticed to me, but you signed up to become a medic instead."

"I know all this already."

"Most people would leap at the chance to do the impossible, like spit fire and throw massive gusts of air. You didn't, you chose to fix people."

"There's nothing wrong with that," I retorted defensively, suppressing a cough.

"In the eyes of the people monitoring your training, it was a problem. They wanted you to throw around powerful Ninjutsu, they wanted someone who could wipe out an enemy team in seconds. They got a medic. The fact that you were a damn good one, as good as those with ten times your experience, didn't matter. They threatened to place you with someone who would make you learn Ninjutsu."

"I know all of this, what's your point?"

"The council didn't care how it was done, they wanted you to be their pet child Jōnin. They wanted everyone to know the Uzumaki were still alive and loyal to only Konoha, it didn't matter that what made them great was lost."

"What's your point?" I demanded.

"Tell me: could you kill someone in cold blood?"

I didn't answer.

"No, I don't think you could. You're different now, I can tell, but when faced with a defeated opponent, I don't think you could ever kill them. In a real fight, not the petty skirmishes you've been in, you wouldn't be able to intentionally kill someone. I've watched your fights, and all of your kills have been reflexive, accidents. You hit harder than you intended, the poison on your senbon killed them, you misaimed and struck their neck instead of across their shoulder blades with your sticks, or simply got a lucky hit to their ribs that eventually killed them. All the other skirmishes you've been in have ended with me or Inuzuka killing your incapacitated opponent."

I assumed that those I beat had been taken hostage and it stung to find out otherwise.

"You have six confirmed kills," he stated tonelessly. "That's the lowest of all active shinobi, only excluding a very small handful of Genin who haven't been out of the village yet."

It was a long time before he spoke again.

"My point is this: in this world, you are an arrogant, naïve, bitter, disrespectful, ignorant child. Even so, you're the kind of person the leadership of this village needs. If you come back from Iwa, and at this point, it is extremely unlikely, you won't be the same person. You'll come back as cold and heartless as anyone else."

"No, I won't come back cold, I swear."

"There is no way the Hokage will be able to negotiate your fair treatment. At best, you'll be worked half to death. At worst, you'll be tortured for information. Everyone you meet there will hate you simply for existing."

"You're wrong."

"You're too soft. The Tsuchikage has no sense of kindness or fairness like the Hokage does."

"Stop."

In an instant, Sakumo was in front of me, roughly grabbing a fistful of my hair and forcing me to look up at him. I closed my eyes to the pain, clutching his wrist weakly. "You were actively in charge of this village for twenty-four hours. Before that time, you would have stared down anyone who resorted to physical violence to make their point, yet now you're cowering in front of me, unwilling to retort. You would never have curled against anyone like a child, yet you cling to Ise like a toddler. You would never have allowed me to talk down to you, yet you're not even trying to stop me."

"Stop, please." I knew Sakumo could be cruel, but that was something he reserved for enemies, not me.

"You can't even handle a long-overdue upbraiding. Where's your smart, philosophical retort, your opposing opinion with obscure evidence to back it up? Why aren't you analyzing, rationalizing my behavior, grinning at some supposedly obvious flaw in my reasoning?"

I just shrank away from him.

"Why aren't you contradicting me simply because you can?" He hissed in my face and released me. I shot to my feet, grabbing the front of Sakumo's vest and shoving him back the two steps until his back hit the wall, and he just let me. My head spun at the exertion, but I ignored it.

"I don't antagonize people for the hell of it, I attack them because they refuse to recognize their mistakes, because they're wrong. I'm antagonistic, yes, but only if it gets me somewhere. I don't fight for the sake of fighting. Yes, since I brought Ise and his family back to Konoha, I've changed, but it's not like you've been here to see it. Sure, it's immature, but Ise is the closest thing to a parent I've ever had. He's always kind no matter what, simply because it's the right thing to do, which is more than can be said about you." I barely managed to suppress a cough, turning my back and laying down on the hospital bed, facing away from him. "No, I'm not going fight and argue with you simply because you want me to. You're absolutely right. I'm a coward, I'm immature, infantile, arrogant, naïve, self-righteous, petty, rude, weak, irresponsible, hypocritical, you name it, but I still care. I care about the children here, Genin, Chuunin, orphan, student—I care about them, they're someone's child, whether that someone is the strongest shinobi in the village or a disowned teenager who abandoned the kid at birth. If ruining myself is what it takes to save them from the same fate, then I'll do it."

"I'm begging you to reconsider."

"No."

"Kichiro—"

"No!" I cried, flipping over and sliding off the bed to kneel at his feet. "Please stop asking, begging, persuading, demanding, threatening, intimidating me! I can't change my answer." I broke off, unable to breathe, and for once, it wasn't because I was sick.

Sakumo slowly sank to his knees as well, defeated. "I understand why, but I can't agree with you. I'll respect your decision."

It was a pyrrhic victory.


	29. Chapter 29

Two days of steady deterioration later, I was forced to attempt medical ninjutsu on myself to forcibly sustain a high enough fever to kill whatever pathogen assaulted me. It wasn't the most elegant of solutions, but it worked, even if it nearly killed me in the process. Several hours later, the disease halted and I began to steadily improve. The only person I saw during that time was Ise. I never left the small hospital room, not even to go to the bathroom. It was absolutely humiliating to be too weak to even control my own bowels. After another day, I regained enough strength to begin to heal myself. Unless he left while I was asleep, Ise stayed with me the entire time.

Danzō returned at the end of that day, looking grave and carrying my uniform in a neatly folded stack and a pack slung over his shoulder. "I don't know how he managed it, but Hiruzen haggled the terms extremely close to what Hatake-san said you would agree to and managed to delay Iwa's arrival by a day and a half to give you just enough time to recover." Ise quickly turned to leave, uncomfortable with shinobi talk, but Danzō stopped him. "Thank you, Uzumaki-san." He murmured. There was something else I didn't quite catch. Ise nodded once and the door swung closed behind him.

"The terms?" I asked, standing up and taking the clothes while he dropped the pack on the bed.

Danzō sat down and stared at the floor. I took the hint and started to change out of the loose, overlarge hospital clothes and into my uniform and haori. Someone had cleaned and polished my hitai-ate for the first time since I received it.

When I finished and rustled through the pack, confirming everything I needed was present, Danzō spoke. "You will spend several years in Iwa as a part of a one-sided shinobi exchange program. Somehow, Iwa found out about the fact that you can control the Kyuubi and are under the impression that you taught the Hachibi Jinchuuriki to do the same. They are unaware that you have any knowledge of Fūinjutsu."

"And there will be no prisoners on either side, correct?"

"The Hokage's son will accompany you, but the two of you should remain together and will be treated fairly. Iwa is only interested in gaining Konoha's strengths. You embody two of them and the Kekkei Genkai are out of their reach, no matter how weak Konoha is, we are still theoretically able to force the three other countries we have defeated to turn against them should they pose a legitimate threat of stealing our secrets or people as their own. Iwa decided to play it safe."

"I didn't agree to any other hostages."

"If you cooperate, you might be able to persuade them to send the boy home early."

"Years are a long time."

"They want to subvert your loyalty. If they can persuade you to join their side, they gain a powerful mind as well as a Jinchuuriki."

"It's not like they can succeed."

"No, the seal on your forehead makes sure of that, but they don't know that. The Hokage passed this message through Hatake-san."

Danzō held out a small square of paper to me, covered with the Hokage's handwriting. It was an explanation of the situation and ended with a polite request to behave myself. There was no signature.

He continued after I finished the message. "While you were asleep, you were given an ANBU tattoo, which is actually a seal, for several reasons. First, the official stance on your whereabouts will be that you are on a top-secret mission rather than confirming that you are in Iwa. Second, as soon as the Hokage activates it, you will be added to the shadow ranks and should you die, it will notify the Hokage immediately and destroy your body. Finally, it will prevent questioning of skills you want to keep to yourself. The Tsuchikage is under the impression that ANBU members are unable to share restricted techniques, even when tortured. The suicide aspect of the seal was not included in yours. No other seals were placed on you without your knowledge."

I was not happy to learn that, but the expression on Danzō's face told me it was one of those things no one would apologize for and I would just have to deal with. I would never have consented to joining ANBU if I had the ghost of a choice.

He finished his instructions with: "Meet me at the gate in one hour, I will bring your bag. Unless you absolutely must speak with someone, do not reveal yourself to anyone but the adults in your family. They are the only ones cleared to know of your true whereabouts, and you may disclose the entire situation to them. Impress upon them that until they are notified otherwise, they are not to breathe a word of the situation, not even among themselves. Do secure the room as I'm sure Hatake-san taught you."

I nodded once and he showed me to the roof where I took off. It didn't take long for me to reach the Uzumaki house under a Henge. It was shortly after midnight according to the moon. I slipped into the top level of the house and took a minute to catch my breath before swinging down the empty space where the unsafe staircase had been taken out. Minato and Kushina were curled together in one corner of the second floor. Several candles burned around the room, lighting it so there were no shadows near them.

Downstairs, I could hear Ise waking Fusō and the two of them moving to the living room.

Minato's back was pressed against the wall and Kushina's face was pressed into his chest they each had fistfuls of the other's shirts. I hugged the wall and stepped into the ring of light. Cautiously, I knocked on the wall to wake them up. Minato shot upright, groggy.

It only took him a second to recognize me. "Kai!" He cried and tried to release a nonexistent Genjutsu, just to be sure. I flinched as the chakra washed over me, but didn't move. He roughly shook Kushina's shoulder to wake her.

"I need to talk to you both," I murmured and gestured towards the giant hole in the floor. Without waiting to see if they would follow, I backed away and swung down to the first floor, heading straight for the living room. They caught up as I was opening the door. I didn't meet anyone's eyes as they sat down in the circle of furniture and I closed the door while activating the security seals. Kushina left a place open for me beside her, but I sat in a separate chair, staring at the ground between us. "How much do you know about the situation with Iwa?" I glanced at Fusō and Ise. Only Ise seemed to know what was going on, the rest were only confused. "What do you know?" I repeated softly, unable to look up.

"There's an information blackout, Nii-san. No one knows anything about what's going on outside of the village."

"Since this isn't the official story that will be released to the public, none of what I tell you now is to leave this room or be spoken about after I finish." I told them bluntly. "Konoha lost the war."

Silence answered me.

"The Hokage left to fight on the war front, but at that point, the war was already lost and he walked into a trap." When no one spoke, I continued. "Because of that, there are reparations to pay."

The silence continued.

I stood up and started to pace. "They were extremely specific about what they wanted."

Minato figured it out first, a leap in logic only a genius like him could make. "Stop it! No, they can't—" He shot to his feet as if burned and lurched towards the door.

I stepped in his way before he made it a full step and he attempted to punch me in the gut, but I caught him by the wrist. He followed through with a swing at my face. I knocked it to the side and put a hand on Minato's chest. "Calm down," I ordered him. He relaxed and slumped back down beside Kushina. "Injuring me isn't going to change anything."

"What's going on, what are you talking about?" Kushina asked standing up.

I sat down and rubbed my face. "I'm going to Iwa and it's going to be a long time before I come back." That was a nice way to put it, right?

"No!" Kushina shrieked. I flinched backwards at the sudden volume.

"The decision's been made and the treaty will be signed as soon as Shimura-san and I reach the Iwa camp."

"Nii-san, you can't! None of this is your fault because never did anything to Iwa, -ttebane! You haven't hurt anyone!"

"Kushina—"

"Stop it! Stop it!" She shrieked. "It's not right and you know it!"

I stayed seated, staring at the ground between my feet. "You're right, it's wrong to demand someone's political imprisonment, especially that of someone who committed no war crimes. That doesn't change the fact that it still _is_. I can handle it—"

"The last three times you were in a public confrontation in this village, it left you incapacitated," Minato reasoned.

"Come on, I'm only a Chuunin, do you really expect me to be in decent condition after successfully neutralizing Jōnin?" I probably should have looked up at Minato for that comment, but I couldn't look them in the eye and tell them they were right, that I made my decision, and nothing could be changed.

"Then how are you still alive?"

"I'm extremely lucky."

Out of the corner of my eye, I saw Minato's fists clench around his knees.

"You can't leave," Kushina pleaded.

I stood up, but still didn't look up at them. "If not me then who?"

"Anyone," she murmured.

"A child?"

"What are you talking about?"

"Originally, Iwa demanded the heirs of the Sarutobi, Uchiha, Hyuuga, Akimichi, Aburame, and Senju clans. All except the Hyuuga and Uchiha heirs are your age or younger."

"Then let the Uchiha and Hyuuga deal with it!"

"You don't mean that, Kushina."

"Yes, I do!"

"Kushina—"

"No, for once, I mean it and you can't tell me otherwise, -ttebane! You've worked so hard to take care me, Ka-chan, To-chan, Nagato, Minato—You can't just abandon us like Jiraiya-sensei did!"

I looked up at her sharply. "I am not—"

"You are!" Minato retorted, standing up and getting in my face.

He was right, I was abandoning them, but if I stayed, I could eventually fail them in a worse way. With me as a high-profile prisoner, they would be less of a high-profile target so they could train for several years, and hopefully be seen as nothing more than collateral damage during the war, worthless except through their affiliation to me. I had found a new hobby in leading people to underestimate me, and the people I cared about, over the course of this war. Self-deprecation with a realist's vocabulary did wonders in manipulating perceptions.

"You're an insensitive jerk, you know that?" Minato spat in my face, standing on tiptoes to reach my height. He was rather obviously acting and I had been called that and worse enough times that it didn't bother me. Though, it was a bit unnerving to see a kid doing his absolute desperate best to hurt and guilt me into attempting to pull off the impossible, even though he had to have known it wouldn't have worked.

"I am now aware," I answered neutrally. Minato was somewhat naïve, but not so much as to know that even if I disagreed with the Hokage, the treaty, or the effectiveness of the solution enough to go back on my word, nothing would have come of it. He was aiming for something else, but I couldn't quite figure it out. They shared a look, confirming the suspicion and indicating that Kushina was in on whatever he was thinking. There was some kind of code to the way they shifted and fidgeted, but I didn't comment.

Minato faltered, but managed to keep up the anger act as I stared him down.

"I'm not going to argue with you, Minato."

"Stop it!" He shrieked at me. I took a sharp step backwards, sensitive to the noise after spending days with no noise other than quiet conversation and coughing. The back of my leg hit the chair and it skidded backwards a few inches. "Stop it, stop it, STOP IT!"

"Minato, calm down," I responded quietly.

"No! You're just standing there like nothing is wrong!"

"There's nothing that can be done—"

"I don't care!"

I actually flinched at that. He didn't have to fake the anger anymore.

"You know this is wrong!" He shoved me backwards a step and the chair skidded back another foot.

"I am aware."

"Then why aren't you doing anything? Why are you just standing there?" He pushed me again. "You're just being cruel, careless, and cowardly." He shoved me hard enough to knock me into the chair, sliding it backwards at least two feet.

"I'm not going to fight you, Minato."

"Why not? Why don't you ever fight back?"

"I'm not going to fight you."

"Why?" He all but screamed in my face.

"No matter what I say, you're not going to be satisfied. I won't argue with you. Please just let it go." Cautiously, I stood up.

"It's not going to work, Minato," Kushina murmured to him. "Nii-san—" She broke off and turned away for a moment.

I swore to myself that I wouldn't get upset or frustrated with them, but they were testing that resolve. In a sick, twisted way, it was funny to watch them attempt the good-cop-bad-cop manipulation technique.

"Nii-san, we need you here."

I hesitated before responding. "No, you don't. Between them, Ise and Fusō are capable of doing everything I can do except fight."

"But they're not the same!"

"We've talked about this. In our line of work, missions can last for years at a time. Just think of my absence as a mission, okay?"

"You're a medic! This isn't supposed to happen!"

"I'll be fine, and I'll come back in a few years. I promise."

"You can't promise that."

I glanced over at Ise and Fusō, but they were murmuring to each other by the door. I respected them enough not to eavesdrop.

Kushina lunged forward like she was about to hug me. I barely saw the glint of metal in time before she tried to stab me with what I assumed to be a poisoned senbon. I caught her wrist and twisted it, forcing her to turn around and lean backwards precariously with a pained hiss. I took the senbon out of Kushina's hand and tossed it up into the ceiling.

Minato jerked towards me, and I dragged Kushina between us.

"Goodbye," I murmured sadly. I untwisted her arm, released her, and walked away. I paused at the door long enough to give Ise a hug and let Fusō kiss the top of my head. With slow, deliberate movements, I took the keys from the necklace my dog tags dangled on and pressed them into Ise's hand.

"Come back, kiddo, we love you," Ise said as I opened the door.

"I love you too," I responded softly, briefly meeting their eyes before looking at the two Genin in the middle of the room. When they didn't look up, I closed the door behind me.

(-_-)

I had plenty of time before I was supposed to meet with Danzō at the gate, so I walked the longer, mostly-forested route to the gate with my hands in my pockets, hitai-ate clutched in my fist. I barely noticed the bird dive-bombing my face in time to dodge.

I recognized the white streak through its wings and held out my arm for the summon to land on. The bird's talons thankfully didn't pierce the gloves I wore to cover the seals on my hands as it landed and eyed me carefully.

"Kanon-san," I greeted evenly. " _Was the surprise attack really necessary?_ "

" _Sue me, it's difficult to aim when I summon myself._ "

" _I suppose you have something important to tell me?_ "

" _The mockingbirds have accepted you as their summoner._ "

" _I am honored._ " I continued walking towards the gate. " _Do all of you speak English?_ "

" _Yes, but you will only be summoning me._ "

" _That's fine. I don't need anything right now, but thank you for informing me I've been accepted._ "

" _I think I'll stay for a while. The summon realm gets dull._ " The bird hopped onto my shoulder. I leaned away, the impossible amount of chakra the bird had was overwhelming. " _Get used to it,_ " the bird snapped in my ear.

I ignored her and tied the hitai-ate over my forehead.

"Uzumaki-san," Danzō greeted me at the gate when I arrived. The two other council members stood beside him, and a Genin I assumed to be the Hokage's son sitting on a bench behind them.

"Shimura-san," I responded evenly.

"I don't like this arrangement."

"No one does."

"I have enough men to take the Iwa encampment."

"Do you have enough to finish this war if those who were forced to scatter are unable to return?"

His jaw clenched.

"I didn't think so."

"What's with the bird?" He asked.

"Summon."

"I've never seen that type of bird before."

"I'm special."

" _This man founded ROOT,_ " Kanon snapped. " _Don't trust him._ "

" _He's founded ROOT but it hasn't gone rogue yet._ "

"What are you saying?" One of the council members, the woman, snapped.

"Nothing that involves you," I retorted.

" _She helped ROOT pass under the radar._ "

"Okay, that comment involves you and it wouldn't be wise of me to repeat it."

" _You have more attitude than can possibly be healthy._ "

"And that was a snipe at me."

" _You are going to get yourself killed with that tongue._ "

"Alright, the bird needs to shut it."

"The bird needs to shut it," Kanon mocked.

"Summons are supposed to be subservient to their summoner," Danzō scolded.

"Yeah, well, I don't care, so the old man can shut it as well."

"The old man can shut it as well," Kanon mocked both of us.

The Genin leaned around the female council member whose name I could never remember and gaped at me and Kanon.

"The sooner we leave; the sooner I can get this over with."

Danzō snatched my bag off the bench and threw it at me, grabbed the Genin's arm, and slung the boy's bag over his shoulder. After a glance at me, he led the way out of the village, through the Chuunin and Jōnin guarding the walls. The other two council members stayed behind.

(-_-)

No one spoke as Danzō led the way through the forests surrounding the village. The Hokage's son appeared terrified out of his mind. He kept stumbling and trying to hang back while Danzō pulled him along.

After five minutes, I grew sick of it and stepped forwards to sling my arm around the boy's shoulder and pinch Danzō's hand to force him to let go.

"Hey, I'm Kichiro," I greeted, holding out a hand to shake his.

"Itsuki," he responded uncertainly, cringing slightly underneath my arm.

"What's your favorite part of being a shinobi?"

He murmured something unintelligible.

"Sorry, I didn't catch that."

"Throwing kunai and shuriken."

"Are you any good?"

"Best in my graduating class." The corner of his mouth twitched up.

"Know anything about senbon?"

"They're for wimps."

"I'm hurt."

He laughed once, but seemed to lose the energy to finish the noise. "Just because most kids idolized the Habanero's big brother doesn't mean we all did."

"Well, at least one of you has a brain."

"I beat your scare in the accuracy test for the graduation exam."

"If you say so. I couldn't stick around to look at the rankings."

"Why don't you care?"

"I didn't want to take the test."

"Why didn't you want to be a shinobi?" He asked, baffled.

"I didn't like fighting."

"But you won the match against the Chuunin. No one else could do that!"

"I'm perfectly capable of beating the snot out of any Chuunin who deserves it. It doesn't mean I like it."

"The rumors about you beating the Uchiha clan heir are true?"

"The Sharingan can't predict what it can't see. I can be sneaky if I want to. Enough about me. What do you want to specialize in?"

He shrugged, peeling my arm off his shoulders. "Taijutsu, probably, and weapons."

"Why?"

"What do you mean?"

"I'm specializing in Iryo-Ninjutsu because I don't want to fight. Why did you choose Taijutsu over everything else?"

"My father started out with Taijutsu before he mastered anything else."

"So?"

"Shut up, both of you," Danzō snapped. "We're almost there."

"Well, before we go any further, do you understand what's going on and what can be expected, and how you are supposed to react?" I asked him.

Itsuki nodded shortly.

"Then let's take this by storm."


	30. Chapter 30

I took off my haori, folding and stuffing it into my bag then retied my hitai-ate to completely obscure my hair color, hiding my sticks in my bag as well, replacing them with the bokken I sealed into the hilt of one of the sticks and strapping that to my back in the same manner Sakumo wore his sabre. There was nothing to reveal my identity to foreign ninja. About a quarter-mile of walking later, three Iwa Jōnin materialized in front of me. I focused my paltry sensing abilities and felt the bare edges of the Iwa camp ahead and to my right.

"Hello, Jōnin-san. I'm Konoha's diplomat for the duration of these peace negotiations. Per the agreement made at the end of the previous war, peace negotiation must be made between two groups of equal numbers and rank. For the sake of the pretext of fairness and assuaging everyone's paranoia, I would like to request that the agreement in that respect be honored and that there be equal representation present. Just so there is no confusion, I am a Chuunin, Shimura-san is a Jōnin, Sarutobi-san is a Genin, and Kage are considered to be in their own rank."

Without a word, the Jōnin melted away, at least visibly, and I watched them return to their camp through my chakra sense.

"What are you thinking?" Danzō hissed at me as soon as they were out of earshot. "Now they're going to return with prisoners, maybe the Hokage himself, and outnumber us."

"Keep up, Shimura-san, that was the idea. Little Sarutobi-san here just told us he has excellent aim. If worst comes to worst, he throws a bunch of kunai at our own men to free them and we'll be evenly matched. The idea is to have the Hokage here, because I don't have a lick of experience with this and I don't trust you to fulfil the contract. If anything goes south, you need to get him away as fast as you possibly can." I turned away from him and plopped down where I stood, crossing my legs. Kanon ruffled her feathers and settled onto my shoulder to wait, one eye never leaving Danzō.

It only took a few minutes for the Iwa delegation to arrive with three prisoners: The Hokage, the man I recognized as the Uchiha clan head, and, to my surprise, Tsunade. All three had standard Konoha prisoner seals on their chests, meant to prevent them from using chakra. Though Tsunade and the Uchiha were probably unable to break free of the seals, and thus were easily contained by the wire that bound their hands and feet, I knew the Hokage had to be capable of escaping it. The seal was only meant to contain Jōnin and below, not S-ranked nin and Kage. By the nearly-dead look of their extremities, all three of them would have significant damage to their hands and feet once the ropes came off. I ignored the Tsuchikage standing in front of me until I had assessed the number of people present as well as the condition of Iwa's prisoners. I wasn't entirely surprised when I finally recognized the man seething at my inattention to him.

Ōnoki stood in front of me, his arms crossed.

"Have a seat, Tsuchikage-san, I have a feeling we will be here for some time," I invited politely. "I apologize for the fact that there is no tea or refreshments to share, but as you can see, we are in the middle of a forest. If you would like, I'm sure Sarutobi-san would be able to find something."

"Who are you, boy?" Ōnoki remained standing

"I'm the person you will be dealing with when it comes to relations between Konoha and Iwa."

"What is your name?"

"You may call me Ryuunosuke for now." Ōnoki stiffened at that before grinning. I suppressed a shudder of fear. I had a feeling I would regret using my father's name instead of a code or the most generic name in Fire Country.

"That is not your real name."

"No, it is not." I feared he knew exactly who I was.

"I would like to know who exactly I'm dealing with."

"With all due respect, Tsuchikage-san, there is a significant difference in strength between us. My rank is already far more information about myself than I am comfortable with giving out. On the off-chance that you may be familiar with my name, I would like to preserve my anonymity."

Ōnoki just smirked and accepted the statement. "Do you have the authority to speak for your village?"

"I have the authority to represent, speak for, and make binding agreements on behalf of my village." I inclined my head towards the Hokage, who nodded in confirmation. "Considered Hokage-sama is currently compromised, my authority on village matters supersedes his. Uzumaki Kichiro, who is currently the head of the village, granted me the authority to hand back his authority when I see fit."

"You are only a child, and according to all reports, this Uzumaki Kichiro is only a young teenager." Translation: I see our information on you has been lacking.

Continuing the veiled conversation would not do me any favors. "I believe we have terms of a peace treaty to discuss. I see no reason to debate the workings and choices of my village leadership with an outsider."

He gave a nod of respect and sat down in front of me. "What do you know of the current situation?"

"I think you have misjudged my character. I am not an individual who is eager to please. In our world, information is currency and I've given as much as I'm willing to without proper compensation."

That comment initiated a staring contest between us. After a few minutes, I felt his killing intent press down on me. I didn't react or retaliate. The Hokage shifted slightly, which broke the contest in my favor when the Tsuchikage glanced towards him in alarm.

"What are your terms?" I asked, ignoring the Hokage's smirk. The seal tag on the front of his chest was slightly blackened around the edges and the tiny bit of glowing that indicated an active seal was gone. There was a very small number of people who would be able to tell the difference between an active and inactive tag with only a glance. I didn't know how the hell the Hokage managed it, but the man in his place was now a clone disguised as a Genjutsu, I was certain of it, especially when the slightly-singed tag fixed itself. A quick glance behind me revealed Itsuki was represented by a similar Genjutsu.

"I think you know exactly what I want," the Tsuchikage sneered at me. I refocused my attention back on him.

"I think I know as well, but assumptions kill. I also think you have an idea of how much I am willing to yield." I was stalling, dragging the debate out for as long as possible. The Hokage deserved the time with his son and I didn't want to leave Konoha.

Ōnoki studied me for a long time.

"Or perhaps you don't, I don't care. Now, have you written up your demands or not?"

The rest of the encounter went around in circles until it ended up with the agreement Danzō informed me of to begin with. By the time the Tsuchikage and I signed the final document, the sun had fully risen and my nerves were wound so tightly I felt as though I was about to snap. Haggling my own safety and that of a child who may or may not have been watching the entire arrangement was, as of yet, the worst experience of my life, which was compounded by the fact it had dragged on far longer than it needed to. It was worsened by the fact that I knew the fate of the entire village hung in the balance. I knew there were more people watching than I could see or sense, and that was just the icing on the cake.

"Now, Ryuunosuke-san, you have promised me the Uzumaki boy, where is he?" The Tsuchikage demanded with a smirk as we all stood.

I closed my eyes and debated how to answer his question, not for his benefit but as a statement of strength to the Iwa ninja. I was glad I still wore the bandages around my forehead to cover up the seal, similar to how most Branch Hyuuga members hid their cursed seal. Slowly and deliberately, I untied my hitai-ate to reveal my red hair, then retied it normally.

"I am Uzumaki Kichiro." The Iwa ninja blanched.

One of the Tsuchikage's men whistled. "You got balls, kid."

Ōnoki scowled at the man. I just felt sick, even though I valiantly tried to hide it, I was sure most people present picked up on it.

The Hokage's clone dissipated into leaves and he materialized beside me, a hand on my back. It gave the Iwa nin a fright but I didn't even flinch, even though it startled me just as much. The Hokage pushed chakra through my Chuunin vest and I felt it activate the seal tattooed over my right shoulder blade. It burned for a moment but quickly faded. "Do not die for me, boy," the Hokage hissed in my ear before looking up. The seal on my forehead twinged. The two Kage exchanged a look indecipherable to everyone else.

I pulled my bag onto my shoulder, attempting to end the exchange as soon as possible. The treaty was signed and Iwa had no reason to linger in the Land of Fire. "It's been said I have an extremely poor sense of direction but even I know you're facing the wrong way if you're heading back to Iwa," I informed the Tsuchikage before a staring contest could begin and a fight could break out. I bit back the insult when the Hokage's grip tightened on my shoulder.

"You had a good shinobi in the making." The Tsuchikage's hand tightened around my arm while he addressed the Hokage. I tensed as the Hokage's hand wrapped around my other arm. I was just a pawn in their power struggle, which was painfully clear to everyone present. By myself, I couldn't tip the scales one way or another, but I could make sure neither benefited.

I jerked sharply out of their grips. "I believe this meeting is over. Iwa has no reason to remain in the Land of Fire and Konoha has no reason to go back on their word." I untied the bokken from my back and sealed it away, the most obvious motion I could make to tell everyone present to _back down_. The Kyuubi's chakra drew the attention of everyone present before I shut it down and stood there with my arms crossed.

Both sides retreated simultaneously, the Tsuchikage regaining his grip on my arm and dragging me away while a Jōnin picked up Itsuki, not even trying to be gentle. The Hokage's didn't even try to hide his emotions as Danzō grabbed his arms and firmly restrained him from acting. Within a minute, the entire contingent of Iwa nin had left their prisoners behind, incapacitated. I didn't close my eyes until we made it across the border into Ame, as strange as it sounded. I didn't dare close my eyes when I knew at least a half-dozen Konoha teams _had_ to be trailing us until we passed beyond their patrol range. It wasn't until we crossed back into Earth country that I allowed myself to fall asleep for most of the night, tightly wrapped with invisible defensive seals. Nothing living would be able to touch me while I slept, not even the tiny Aburame bugs that had camped out in the bottom of my pack, drawing on my chakra for survival. Itsuki had been unsurprisingly separated from me. My cooperation had been promised, so the closest anyone came to me was to hand me a small portion of the evening meals. It wasn't until we were in Earth country that anyone spoke a single word to me. The Iwa nin were that much more comfortable on their own turf. It was a good thing silence never bothered me.

When we reached the village, I was escorted to a separate entrance, blindfolded, by Iwa's version of ANBU while the others returned through the main one in a triumphant parade. When the blindfold was taken off, we were in a small apartment-like lodging.

"For your own safety, please do not leave your lodgings. It will be your quarters for the duration of your stay." The Iwa-ANBU respectfully exited the apartment. "Tomorrow morning someone will escort you to meet with the Tsuchikage about your role here." The door closed.

Kanon zipped around the lodgings once before landing on my head with a nanny-cam in his beak. " _There's cameras everywhere._ "

" _I didn't even know these things existed yet. It seems like Iwa is holding out on us. Think it has a microphone inside?_ "

" _It can't be very powerful if it does, so stick it in the kitchen cupboard._ "

" _You know that would tip them off that we know what this is. Konoha doesn't have cameras._ "

" _I'll get them all and you can stick them in the kitchen drawer like junk._ "

" _In comparison to what I had in my world, this is junk._ "

" _But here, this is extremely high-tech._ "

" _I could make them paranoid about what Konoha knows and set up all the cameras facing outside the apartment so they become my personal security._ "

Kanon trilled in laughter. " _That would be hilarious, but considering Konoha still has to catch up with this, it wouldn't be wise to spur them so much further ahead._ "

"Go get the others," I said and wandered around until I found the kitchen and tossed it in the drawer, followed by at least ten others from Kanon.

"What do you think they are?" Kanon asked, sounding like a horribly staged question.

"They're not going to blow up so just leave them in the drawer. If you ever feel like telling me what they're really called, I'll be waiting."

With the technique that diminished my need for sleep, I wasn't particularly tired. After setting up seals that would paralyze anyone, and block anything else, that attempted to enter the room I slept in, I fell on the bed and released the summoning.

(-_-)

I woke up to someone banging impatiently on the bedroom door. For a moment, I was inexplicably disoriented. They tried the handle, and I managed to get to the door and jerk it open before they could let go and pulled them through the seal. I almost threw a brace of senbon at their companion waiting beside him when he put his hands up in surrender.

Once I determined they weren't a threat, I released the seal and let the Iwa Chuunin fall on his face.

"What was that?" The Chuunin demanded angrily as he picked himself off the ground.

"I don't like people walking in while I'm trying to sleep, so I don't let them. Is it time to go?"

The Chuunin's partner, who couldn't have been older than fifteen, stared at me in awe as he nodded.

Self-consciously, I touched my forehead to make sure the bandages still covered it. It did, so I wasn't exactly sure what he was staring at. Since they were both standing in the doorway and made no motion to move, I turned on my heel and went to pick up my Chuunin vest from the ground and pulled on my sandals. I wasn't very good at taking my shoes off at the door. Generally, they ended beside the bed when I took them off at night.

I donned my sticks and medic pouch, picking up the senbon pouch thoughtfully. "I don't need those," I murmured and tossed it down on my bed, then dumped my bag out on top of it. Several scrolls tumbled out, most of which were filled with clothes, and I separated those, fishing out a scroll with the more complete medical set, which I attached to the small of my back above my sticks.

Keeping my back to the door, I pulled off the bandages around my forehead, quickly finger-combed my hair, and replaced the bandages. I tied my forehead protector over it, pulled on my haori, and turned around, ready to leave. The teenaged Chuunin stared at me suspiciously.

"What?" I demanded.

The older Chuunin sneered at me. "You're meeting with Tsuchikage-sama."

"Your point?"

"Daimyō-sama will be there as well."

"Your point?"

"Most foreign nin wear their formal clothes."

"I am not most foreign nin. I don't care if I step on the toes of a noble no matter how powerful. I'm here simply because Iwa is using me to control Konoha, not to cater to the opinions of those who supposedly hold power." I crossed my arms and glared until they backed down.

 ** _Stupid human traditions._** The Kyuubi said as we walked out of the apartment and directly onto the street.

 _Nice to hear from you._

 ** _The younger ninja before you is the Jinchuuriki of the Yonbi, who is sealed away beyond contact._**

 _Thanks, am I going to have a running commentary for this meeting?_ I asked hopefully.

 ** _Not unless you insist on being as much of an imbecile as those around you, so shut up._**

"So, Jinchuuriki-san, gonna share your name or—"

He stiffened and yanked me out of the street and into an alleyway. I tripped with a yelp and landed on my butt as a rock wall appeared between us and the other Chuunin. "Are you stupid?" He snarled in my face while I climbed to my feet. "I don't know how it is in Konoha, but the people here abhor Jinchuuriki!"

"So? Everyone knows who I am here—"

"And my brother knows it! Does it not bother you when he was sneering at you?"

"I'm pretty sure only my family and my sensei actually like me and they're the only ones who matter, so no, it doesn't bother me."

He crossed his arms. "That's not how it works."

I flinched as someone barreled into the rock wall, which had expanded to envelop us in a cube of stone, that was somehow lit by a light with no origin. "Well, if they hate you because they can't get past the fact you have a giant chakra creature in your gut, they're not worth the effort it takes to see their idiocy." I responded stubbornly. "And I would love to talk to you about this, but I prefer it to be when there aren't people ready to take off my head for it." Another impact rocked the cube, and I grabbed a wall for support.

The teen's shoulders slumped and the cube crumbled, showing at least a dozen and counting Iwa nin about to attack. I barely managed to knock away a kunai from striking him at the last second. He must have been wound tighter than I thought, because somehow, illogically, the Yonbi's chakra started to leak out in a trickle then a rush.

 ** _You humans are idiots._**

 _Thanks for the vote of confidence. What the hell do I do now?_

 ** _Stop him._**

 _I can't do the Five Elements Seal unless someone pins him down and gets me some brushes and ink._

 ** _Then let me._**

 _Have at it._

I closed my eyes and loosened the seal restraining the Kyuubi.

" **Kyuubi!** " The Yonbi snarled through the teen.

The Kyuubi just manifested a mass of chakra around me and leapt forward, pinning the rapidly transforming Jinchuuriki. " **Be still,** " he ordered and everything seemed to freeze. Something passed between the two Bijū and the transformations slowly reversed until the Kyuubi left me with control of my own body and I stood up, leaning heavily against the alley wall.

"That was a very, very stupid thing to do, on the part of everyone present," I panted out. "So, lets learn from our mistakes, to keep ahold of our tempers and paranoia, be nice to our comrades, and don't, for the love of all that's holy, attempt a Jinchuuriki transformation for the first time in the middle of a populated area, even if it is only filled with grouchy Iwa ninja."

They just stared at me like I was insane, which I probably was.

"I'm going to pass out, someone—"

(-_-)

"Let go of the Leaf child, Rōshi-kun," someone murmured pacifyingly.

Another person's arm tightened around my torso and my heels dragged on the ground as whoever it was dragged me another step away, a blade at my throat. "No!" The person dragging me snapped. "I've had enough of your shit to last a lifetime; I won't take it anymore."

"This is no way to repay—"

"I owe you nothing. You said I'd be a hero, but here I'm only despised. You said I'd be strong, but I'm not. You promised a lot of things, but not once have you delivered. I'm done with this!"

I was so glad I kept pre-made seals in my medic pouch. Before anyone realized I was conscious, I pulled one out and slapped it on the leg of the person holding me, grabbing the handle of the blade at the same time so it wouldn't slit my throat. Neck wounds were no fun to heal. They collapsed backwards and I landed on my hands and knees. Someone ran forward and Bijū chakra burned away the paralysis tag.

"Wind Prison jutsu!" I snapped and caught the Jinchuuriki and the person running forward, lifting them into the air. They thrashed in their individual prisons, but otherwise everyone backed up as the Kyuubi assisted in containing the Yonbi's attempts to escape the prison. It was a good thing I didn't use hand seals and I probably looked like I was possessed. "A fire jutsu won't get you out," I told the other nin as they started to run through hand seals. "It'll just get blown around until it burns you up. Water will just end up turned to ice and slice you to ribbons, an earth jutsu will peel your skin off. I don't know what a lightning jutsu will do, but if you feel like seeing what happens when you're trapped with a bunch of electricity, feel free."

He smirked and started a different set of hand seals.

"And in case you didn't know, I'm wind-natured and have a near-infinite supply of chakra."

He tried it anyway. I assumed he attempted to blow a giant mass of wind in my direction, but it just blew all the air out of the prison.

I compressed it so the person didn't blow themselves up through the lack of pressure. "Cool! I didn't know it did that! I wonder if I could take the air out by myself." The trapped nin's eyes widened in horror.

"No experimenting with jutsu inside the village, Uzumaki!" The Tsuchikage's voice snapped from behind the onlookers. They parted to reveal the Tsuchikage marching forward, furious, with what could only be the Daimyō trailing behind him. He stopped in shock when he took in the situation. "You are containing the Yonbi," he deadpanned. I glanced over at the trapped Jinchuuriki. The Kyuubi had completely taken over that part of the jutsu.

"Yeah, that's not me, that's the Kyuubi. He ruined one of my seal tags so I let his pissed-off big brother take care of him. I probably look really demonic right now. Sorry about that, I promise I'm not crazy or possessed."

The Tsuchikage crossed his arms as I focused on the wind prison to let air back in so the poor Iwa nin didn't suffocate.

"Do you want me to let him go?"

"Put the Yonbi back into its Jinchuuriki."

"But I didn't take him out!"

"Uzumaki!"

"It's not my fault you have sucky seal masters here!"

"Are you saying you're better?"

"No, I just suck at Fūinjutsu and I know it."

"You're an Uzumaki."

"And you're stereotyping me."

"You have no respect for authority."

"None at all."

"Uzumaki!"

"Do you just like saying my name or something?" It probably wasn't very smart of me to turn on the smart-ass in front of the Tsuchikage, but he was asking for it. "I don't blame you, it does have a ring to it, Uzumaki Kichiro, Spirit—"

"Let him go." The Tsuchikage pointed at the regular nin.

I shrugged. "Only if he promises not to attack me." I took a small step backwards and placed one foot over the fallen kunai, ready to fling it at the knees of someone in case I got in a pinch.

With a nod of agreement, the Tsuchikage gestured for me to release him.

I set the trapped nin on his feet before releasing the jutsu.

"Now, how can the Yonbi be secured?"

Shrugging I silently turned the question towards Kurama, who didn't answer. "I have no idea. Maybe get rid of whatever pissed them both off in the first place. I would think you would know how to handle your own shinobi better than me. I'm only nine after all."

I honestly thought he was going to strangle me for that comment. After a moment and a few waves of his hand, the shinobi backed up and spread out, picking up a few incapacitated civilians and lower ranked nin on their way.

"You better figure something out quickly and very soon, because I don't think I can sustain this for very much longer. I'm nine years old in case you've forgotten in the past few seconds and I'm still trying to recover from the trip here. Besides, I shouldn't be using Bijū chakra for at least another few years."

The few nin remaining were beginning to panic as a little bit of sense settled into their thick heads.

 ** _I might have an idea but it won't be pleasant. Make sure they don't kill you or the other Jinchuuriki when I knock you both out for a few minutes._**

"Well, you're in luck. The Kyuubi has an idea that might just solve all our problems. I'll say this once. Don't touch or move me or him. Sorry in advance about the roadblock, but it shouldn't take very long."

The Yonbi seemed to pass out, briefly revealing the terrified teen before he too slumped. The Kyuubi's chakra snapped back inside of me and the jutsu broke.

"Ah hell, this is a bad day," I murmured as I passed out for the second, and hopefully last, time that day.

* * *

 _Author's note: Greetings from Milwaukee! Anyway, the next three chapters are probably my three least favorite chapters in this entire story. I could have glossed over Kichiro's stint in Iwa with a time skip, but that's not fair to anyone because they lay the foundation for what happens later. If y'all get lost, don't worry, Kichiro has absolutely no idea what's going on either. It'll make more sense later, I promise._


	31. Chapter 31

When I reopened my eyes, I was sprawled in front of the Kyuubi, who was locked in his seal. " **You owe me little rat.** "

"I probably do, what the hell do you want?"

" **The Yonbi will remain asleep for several days. Get out and make sure I don't hear anything from you for the next few weeks at least.** "

"I would be very happy with that arrangement."

With the feeling of having been just punched in the head, I woke in the middle of the street with a groan.

"For the record, this is why I hate fighting. Someone always gets hurt, and that someone is always me." I glared up as the Tsuchikage, who stood over me with his arms crossed while I tried to ease my headache with a little bit of medical Ninjutsu. "Stupid chakra-induced headaches that can't be fixed by chakra," I muttered to myself.

"There's no such thing as a wind prison," the Tsuchikage snapped.

"The last person to say that to me was a traitor. For your information, I am an Uzumaki. As a rule, we suck at Genjutsu, which means my wind prison exists." That was bad logic, but at the moment, I didn't care.

"That doesn't even make sense, and Konoha doesn't have access to advanced wind jutsus."

I shrugged and climbed to my feet, staggering slightly. Someone ducked under my arm and gripped my haori tightly, tapping out a discrete message of identity. A quick glance revealed Itsuki. He wasn't supposed to have run up to me, but it was nice to have a comrade, despite the fact that I was probably supposed to be protecting him, not the other way around. Even so, I let him take on a good portion of my weight so I didn't sway as my head throbbed. It wasn't fair that I put most of my weight on him, but he was a shinobi, albeit a Genin. He could handle my weight without a problem. He could probably handle an adult's weight without flinching, but I had to find a balance. Itsuki was the Hokage's son. I had no doubt he had been trained on how to handle himself as a political prisoner. At the same time, I barely knew the kid, was not trained to handle being a prisoner, and was unfortunate enough to have a higher rank than the kid. He would defer to me, even if I royally screwed up. I needed to get him out of Iwa. At the very least, I had to get him separated from me.

"'Chiro-nii-san—" Itsuki broke off. The nickname—I hated that nickname, but every kid at the hospital called me 'Chiro-sensei'—and the 'nii-san' was new. When he made no attempt to finish the statement, I realized that it was just a ploy at familiarity, an attempt to avoid separation again. I had read his file, he was one of the Genin under my command, but the details were sparse. The Hokage had no need for a complete profile of his son and no one else had reason to need the information. Without betraying my thoughts, I ruffled his hair and shifted so that I was mostly between him and the Tsuchikage. I needed his attention on me. I had to be the valuable one, the threat.

"If I were you, I would play very nicely with your Jinchuuriki. You can only beat a dog so many time before it bites back. Now, if you had something to speak with me about, Tsuchikage-san, it better happen soon."

Gritting his teeth, the Tsuchikage glared at me and jerked his head for me to follow. In short order, we made it to what I assumed to be his office, which looked surprisingly similar to the Hokage's. He took a seat behind his desk and I slumped in one of the chairs in front of it, uninvited. Itsuki had much better manners, waiting until the Tsuchikage gave permission, then sitting with the proper posture on the rather large chair with me. After a few seconds, someone entered. A quick glance confirmed it was the Daimyō, but he remained behind us, taking a seat on the short sofa beside the door. An intimidation tactic. It would have worked with a civilian, but intimidation was never as effective when I had an ally watching my back. Also, my opinion of civilian nobility went down the drain the moment the Fire Daimyō opened his mouth.

"You are a medic," the Tsuchikage snapped when everyone was as comfortable as they could get.

"Yup, but I'm not as good as you seem to think. I just like to experiment, and most of the time it works."

"Most of the time?"

"Yeah, there was this one time that I tried to heal a giant cut someone already stitched up, but I didn't take the stitches out first. It wasn't pretty."

The Tsuchikage just studied me intently. My attempt to distract him with information died pathetically. "Why aren't you a Ninjutsu fighter?"

I rolled my eyes. Stubbornness it was. "I didn't want to."

"Why not?"

"Tell me, what's the point of fighting if it only brings death?"

"I see."

"No, you don't. Next question."

He studied me for a long time. "What do you think of Iwa so far?"

"Depends, do you want my honest, blunt answer or my nice one?"

"The honest one, please."

I rolled my eyes. "Your shinobi are needlessly cruel, and it has mostly resulted in heightened paranoia among the non-shinobi and shinobi who do not participate in mainstream specializations. At least that's my take on it. In comparison, from the minimal information I've gathered, Konoha reveres diversity. By my standards, almost everyone I've met is a pigheaded bigot, but to each his own."

"And the nice one?"

"I'm an Uzumaki and my clan is still an ally of Konoha, therefore, this entire village is my enemy and I ought to hold no good will for anyone or anything here."

The Tsuchikage leaned forward and folded his hands to create a rest for his chin while he contemplated his response to my assessment. "And who would you not consider a 'pigheaded bigot,' as you so bluntly put it?"

"I haven't met them yet."

"You said you 'ought to hold no good will.' Does that mean you have a differing opinion?"

"That completely depends on you. After the events of today, any potential acknowledgment I have for this nation has plummeted. Next question."

"You are a very difficult child."

"I try very hard." I scowled at him and crossed my arms, sliding further down in my chair.

"Why do you like healing?"

"I hate it."

Cue the exasperation. "Why do you do it?"

"Because I hate fighting more."

"You are a pacifist?"

"I—" To my surprise, I realized I couldn't agree with that statement. I didn't know why I was telling the truth. I could have just made up the randomest and most obviously defiant statements I could, but the truth wasn't hurting anything. "Um, I'll get back to you on that."

If someone pushed the right buttons, I probably would declare war on them and dedicate a good portion of my existence to their destruction. While I was thumbing through the rapidly lengthening list of things I would fight for and unilaterally destroy, I belatedly realized the Tsuchikage was speaking again.

"Uzumaki! Are you paying attention?"

"To you? Nope, but I am now. What do you want?"

"If I were to ask you to assist at my hospital, what would you do?" He repeated with forced patience.

"It depends on what you give me in return."

"What do you want?" He gritted out.

"I don't think that's how the bargaining process works." I smirked. I had a feeling this was going to backfire horribly on me. "I have something you want and no motivation to share. Keep in mind that I am more easily motivated not to share it." There was a long pause. I stood up. "If that is all—"

"You are just being difficult."

"Yes, I am, and thank you for noticing my hard work."

"Daimyō-sama, do you have anything to add?"

"Nothing that will benefit anyone here. If I may?" Out of the corner of my eye, I barely caught the Daimyō reaching for Itsuki.

With a bit of strategic chakra use, I managed to slide between them before the Daimyō grabbed the boy's arm. His fingers brushed the front of my vest before he jerked backwards.

"Get out of the way, boy," the Daimyō snapped impatiently.

"Why?"

"That brat is _mine_."

"Actually, as Itsuki-kun's fellow countryman and ranked superior officer, he answers to me."

"I was promised—"

"I don't care."

"The treaty—"

"The treaty says that Itsuki-kun will reside in Iwagakure for the next year and return to Konohagakure unharmed. As his commander, as of now he has orders to remain with me, not be paraded around like a prize animal."

"You can't stop me from taking him."

"In the end, probably not."

"Then get out of my way."

"No."

"I am losing my patience with you, child."

"And you are not comprehending the situation. If you attempt to touch Itsuki-kun without his explicit consent, I am well within my rights to execute you on the spot. Before you ask, yes I am fully aware that I am deliberately threatening your life."

"You would never succeed."

"I probably wouldn't, but to stop me, the Tsuchikage over there would have to kill me, which would invalidate the treaty and to slow your own inevitable destruction you would have to give up any rights you think you have to Itsuki-kun." One hand hovered defensively in front of me while the other tightened around a fistful of Itsuki's shirt. "Tell me, is humiliating a child who can't do anything about who his father is in front of your little noble friends that important to you?"

The Daimyō raised his hand to hit me and at the last possible second I used Kawarimi to replace myself with Itsuki. Before anyone could properly process what happened, I pulled Itsuki out of range to retaliate. The Daimyō's rings had cut deeply into his cheek, but it was a small price to pay.

"Uh oh," I said, grinning like the cat that got the canary. "A deliberate, and successful, attack on Itsuki-kun's person is grounds for his immediate return to Konohagakure or the dissolution of the treaty. Which will it be Tsuchikage-san? Are you confident that you can weather a vengeful and motivated army attacking your borders for an assault against our Hokage, less than a month after an agreement has been made? Or are you sure your military will survive the lack of income when the civilian sect sees how bad you are at following through on contracts?"

"You little bastard!" The Tsuchikage snarled, appearing directly in front of me.

"Whoever strikes first wins, _Ōnoki_."

"You're still here," he sneered back.

I didn't respond. After a long moment, he withdrew and motioned towards the wall where two masked agents materialized.

"Take the younger boy to the Konoha border and dump him there, let his own take care of him."

The second the door closed behind Itsuki, the Tsuchikage grabbed the front of my vest and slammed me against the wall.

"I will not be made a fool of, boy!"

"And I will not be played as one. I'm glad we understand each other."

The next thing I knew, he shoved me out into the hall in front of three Jōnin. "Take him back to the place set up for him and lock him there. He is not to see or speak with anyone until I say so." I blinked once and instead of the Jōnin in front of me, I was stumbling into the apartment with the door slamming behind me. As soon as I landed on my knees, I summoned Kanon.

" _What do you need, Kichiro?_ "

" _I need you to hurry and tell the Hokage that his son should be delivered to the Konoha border and to make sure the kid makes it home safely. If they don't recover him within the month, the Tsuchikage and Iwa's Daimyō have broken the treaty and they need to make sure everyone knows that Iwa is unfaithful to their contracts and they are justified in resuming the war as soon as they are able._ "

" _What the hell happened?_ "

" _Frankly, the kid's life is more important and I'm not sure he's going to be in very good shape when he reaches the border, so someone needs to be there to meet them._ "

" _Fine._ "

Kanon disappeared in a puff of smoke and I pulled myself to my feet, activated the security seal as I entered the bedroom, dumped everything on the floor and collapsed on the bed.

"And now to wait," I muttered into the air. Hours later of making patterns in the ceiling with senbon, I had accomplished nothing but boredom. I could toss kunai and senbon with my feet, but I generally relied on close proximity for them to land. I stopped and collected all the senbon.

After they were all in a neat little pyramid. I resumed making senbon patterns and trying to pull them back to me with rather badly made strings of chakra. I obviously didn't use my fighting senbon, which were made of glass, covered in poison, and built to shatter dangerously in case I hit anything but flesh. I used identical metal ones to train, spar, and mess around with.

Needless to say, I had a lot of senbon and it was a testament to my boredom for the next several hours when I ran out. The majority of the walls and ceiling were covered with spirals and shapes of five-inch senbon when I stood up to start gathering them and putting them away.

Three hours later I stood up to look for food in the kitchen, but it was freakishly empty. I took a quick shower and when I finished, I could smell what could only be takeout in the kitchen. I scowled out a thank you to the air at the confirmation I was being watched, but ate the food anyways, after thoroughly checking it for poisons.

At least no one could actually sneak up on me while I was sleeping without tripping the seals. At least, I hoped they couldn't. I did fall asleep unnaturally fast after the meal.

* * *

 _Author's note: There is a collection of_ sidestories _for this story, head over to my profile to see them!_


	32. Chapter 32

I followed a dull, boring routine for what I guessed to be the next five months. Every morning, I woke up and set up a privacy seal around the dojo to train with Taijutsu katas until my stomach began to growl. I took down the seals and went into the kitchen to find the same simple, bland meal, just barely nutritious enough for a kid my physical age. Rice, a small bowl of miso soup, and raw vegetables or fruits. Afterwards, I washed the dishes and set up a privacy seal to work on sealing, with supplies from the bag Danzō had given me. It had enough resources inside that would probably last me a decade, if not more. I could spend several years going through the bag and still find useful pieces hidden away. It was a masterful work of sealing, tied directly to the ANBU tattoo on my back. The seals were stained into the bag and the items in it. I cursed up a storm when I accidentally activated one of the seals on a senbon and the kunai that exploded out of it impaled both my feet in several places. I was damn lucky, because the floor and wall in front of me had nearly one hundred kunai stuck deep in the wood.

The hidden items were mostly weapons, sealing supplies, and clothes but there were materials that could help me escape from just about anywhere. On little slips of paper, there were disjointed instructions from Danzō that I would periodically stumble across. They were coded in ANBU code, which I only knew the basics of, but quickly learned well enough to read the messages. Some were just reassuring, promising that Konoha hadn't given up on me, that I would be welcomed back when it was over. Others were pieces of strategies to distract and confuse interrogators. A few were infiltration tips and strategies. The messages on caring for injuries were the most entertaining of the bunch. All of them were written on sweet-tasting paper that dissolved when I put it on my tongue. The ink tasted bitter, but consuming the paper was more reliable than trying to burn it.

Around lunchtime, I moved back to the dojo to work on chakra control and practicing the basics of elemental Ninjutsu until dinner while mentally reciting everything I knew about medical Ninjutsu, human anatomy, sealing, and any other topic that came to mind. I wasn't given lunch. At dinnertime, I returned to the kitchen where a meal of fish, rice, vegetables, and a glass of milk waited.

As soon as I finished dinner, I funneled as much chakra as I could into a seal I specifically designed for taking in chakra and doing absolutely nothing with it. It considerably expanded my reserves, and after the first three months, I nearly blew myself up before I realized that the seal couldn't handle the amount of chakra I was pumping into it. I had to make a new seal and destroy the old one, but I counted it as a success. I guessed I was around the level of a Tokubetsu Jōnin in reserves. I either meditated until I fell asleep, or passed out in exhaustion and restarted the cycle the next day. Once a week, I spent as long as I could running around the walls of the dojo to keep up my endurance, not even breaking for meals, and running until I collapsed from exhaustion, at first, it lasted the entire day, and by the fourth month, it lasted two, even after I created seals that weighed me down. Every month, I spent a day working on my balance with my slackline and some ninja wire spread across the dojo.

I would have preferred the entire time spent on intellectual pursuits, but the mysteriously-appearing and disappearing books were things I'd already read. I gained a newfound respect for monks and hermits, because the only individual I had any interaction with was the Kyuubi.

I noticed pale white scars appearing across my skin without corroborating injuries, but for some inexplicable reason, never pursued the matter.

"It's nice to see another human being," I said when an Iwa Jōnin finally opened my front door without invitation as I headed to practice my katas one morning at the beginning of the sixth month.

"The Tsuchikage wishes to see you, get dressed."

"Wonderful, give me a few minutes." I deliberately took an exceedingly long time to get ready, even though the Jōnin watched me carefully the entire time. Sometime in the middle of my imprisonment, the uniform had worn out and I discovered a second, slightly larger and better-fitting uniform in a storage seal Danzō had stuffed in my back. There were also enough to last me for several years, which was good foresight on his part, that enabled me to passively resist any manipulation Iwa attempted. Despite the fiasco with ROOT that I remembered happening, he made a damn good commander, I was certain of that much.

While I changed out of the ragged clothes I wore to sleep in, the Jōnin tapped his foot impatiently.

"Ah, hold your horses, I just woke up." I rolled my eyes at him and tied my hitai-ate over the bandages around my head.

"Excuse me?"

"It's an expression, now, I'm ready to go."

He scowled at me, but led me out anyways, through the streets and up to the Tsuchikage's office.

"Welcome, Kichiro-kun," the Tsuchikage greeted.

I smiled amicably at him and took up his gestured offer for a seat as the Jōnin left.

"I trust you are satisfied with your accommodations?"

"For the most part," I answered. "They're a bit lonely, and I would much prefer to make my own food, but otherwise they are acceptable."

"I will see what I can do to make it more pleasant. Now, did my Jōnin inform you of what I wished to discuss with you?"

"He did not."

"You are a talented and intelligent medic-nin and shinobi. I have received reports that you have worked to keep up your skill in the past months." He paused for my reaction, but I kept my face neutral. It was more difficult than I expected after slightly more than five months of nearly total isolation, but I succeeded. "I wish to propose a mutually beneficial arrangement. Would you like to hear it?"

"Sure." I relaxed into my chair to listen.

"You have medical expertise that rivals the best Konoha medics, especially on the topic of poisons."

 _Someone's scared their allies in Ame will turn on them,_ I sniped to the Kyuubi rather than saying it out loud and breaking the amicability between the Tsuchikage and myself.

"In return for teaching my medics how to combat poisons like you did against Suna, I am willing to grant you training in any two elements of your choice and regular, Taijutsu-only spars with opponents of your caliber."

I had no chance at hiding my surprise at his offer and I spent a long time thinking about it. I couldn't imagine any way it could be significantly detrimental. Only an extremely small percentage of Konoha shinobi utilized poisons on a regular basis, and even fewer made it vital to their fighting style. The only people it would have a significant impact on was Ame, Suna, and Kiri, who all regularly utilized poisons in the war. He must have seen the skill as equally valuable to training in _two_ elements. The spars just helped everyone equally.

I was a strict adherent to the proverb never look a gift horse in the mouth, but in this case, I had to question it. "Why? This offer is clearly and significantly skewed in my favor." He might have assumed I wouldn't be able to learn much about elemental jutsus, simply because it took so long to master, but even so, elemental Ninjutsu was extremely coveted information, so much so that most adherents tended to make up their own jutsus after mastering the basics, mostly because of the lack of willing teachers.

"I believe I will keep that information to myself."

I half-expected that.

"Would you like time to think on my offer?"

"Yes, please."

He nodded, smirking and another Jōnin entered the room. "I will meet with you this afternoon. Until then, my Jōnin will accompany you and show you the village."

I nodded once, bowed politely, and left the room, the Jōnin beside me.

 ** _That Jōnin is the Jinchuuriki of the Gobi,_** the Kyuubi volunteered unexpectedly. I didn't respond, but appreciated the notice.

As soon as we stepped out into the street, I headed directly towards the nearest unhealthy food stand, starved for something other than the bland, barely-filling meals I had been receiving twice a day. While I waited for my food just outside the stand, I summoned Kanon.

" _I need you to contact the Hokage for me,_ " I murmured quietly.

Kanon scowled, but nodded without a word.

I quickly told her the Tsuchikage's offer. " _Ask the Hokage what I should do._ "

Kanon trilled once before vanishing in a puff of smoke so I could pay for my meal.

Unlike Konoha, trees weren't entirely common in Iwa, and it took me a while to find a decent one to climb and eat in. Awkwardly, the Jōnin followed. I unpacked the meal and held half of it to the Jōnin.

"So the Tsuchikage thinks only another Jinchuuriki stands a chance against me if I go crazy. Interesting," I commented. The Jōnin stiffened. "I'm Kichiro, what's your name?"

"Michi," he grunted, accepting the food and opening it. "How did you know?"

I opened my food. "Know what?"

"I'm a Jinchuuriki and this is my favorite food."

"The Kyuubi told me about the Gobi, and I didn't know it was your favorite, just a coincidence, I guess."

"Coincidences don't exist." I let him think whatever he wanted. I really did pick the closest stand and ordered the first two things off the menu.

I took a few bites while I studied him. He wore the standard Iwa uniform without the red shirt beneath his vest, revealing burn scars up his arms. Dark brown hair obscured his face, only showing one light brown eye. Red shinobi pants covered his legs and were tied at his ankles with black cloth to prevent them from getting in the way. He wore no shoes, which was strange, but I didn't comment. He wore no visible weapons, which was slightly unnerving, but considering he was a Jōnin Jinchuuriki, it probably didn't matter.

"I think coincidences exist, unless you want to blame the situation on my nonexistent Jinchuuriki senses that I unconsciously acted on."

The Jōnin shrugged and polished off the rest of the food I handed him. I took my time eating, leaning against the trunk of the tree. A quartet of children ran past laughing, but I ignored them in favor of watching the last few minutes of the sunrise.

"I saw you all those months ago controlling and subduing the Yonbi."

"So?"

"Why didn't you let the Bijū rampage? This village certainly deserves it, and you must hate Iwa for the things that happened during the war."

I shrugged. "I could say it was an intimidation tactic, but I'd be lying. You probably already know this, but utilizing the Bijū's power, without an Uzumaki seal designed to protect the Jinchuuriki, is painful and physically damaging, no matter how fast a Jinchuuriki heals. I have one of the best seals ever made and it hurts me to use the Kyuubi's chakra, even though it heals me at the same time."

Michi frowned. "Rōshi-san is from Iwa and you are from Konoha. The two villages have been at odds since their foundation."

"And Jinchuuriki have been at odds with everyone for just as long. Can you honestly say that the place you live, which has done nothing but make sure you're alive to receive their condemnation, is more important that your very identity?"

"You have a strange perspective."

"So I've been told. Rōshi-san is the Yonbi Jinchuuriki, correct?"

"Correct."

"Is he okay?"

"As far as I know, he is isolated outside the village, similarly to how you were, but he has received more visitors."

"It wasn't his fault, the transformation, I mean. The seal is faulty."

"So you've mentioned. How is it flawed?"

"I wouldn't know; I haven't even seen it."

"Could you fix it, if given the opportunity?"

"It depends. I could almost certainly identify the problem, but I don't know how to alter existing seals." That was a lie. I was capable of altering seals, though my results were inconsistent and Iwa probably didn't have any of the necessary supplies on hand. I didn't have the right ink and I didn't know how to make it.

He hummed, his visible eye never leaving me as I polished off the last of the food.

"Why do you want to know?" I wasn't a vain person, not the slightest, but his hair looked _fluffy_ and was the exact same color as my hair in my previous life. I was envious. I didn't care for my lank red hair, but looking at his hair in comparison made me hate my own. Redheads were cool, always, I even dyed my hair red on a dare once, but only _other_ redheads were cool.

"Tell me, why are Uzumaki seals consistently so much better?"

"You answer my question first."

"I want to know because I've been ordered to try gathering intel on your Fūinjutsu abilities. Why are Uzumaki seals consistently superior to seals from every other village?"

It was a bold answerFrankly I didn't know the answer to that. I had seen very few seals from other villages, and Konoha had such a heavy Uzumaki influence that I wasn't sure of why it was inferior. After a bit of thought, I decided to give him the bullshit answer the Hokage gave Kumo. At the very least, it would solidify the story and only the Uzumaki and Hokage would know better. "Most of it is because Uzumaki chakra is perfectly suited for sealing and Uzumakis have dedicated everything towards perfecting the art to be used with their chakra, going so far as to share enough of their style so that most of what others know of Fūinjutsu refuses to work properly with non-Uzumaki chakra." I could smell the bullshit in that statement, but Michi bought it.

"Basically, the Uzumakis have been conning the rest of the shinobi nations for generations, possibly several centuries."

We shared a laugh and I bundled up the takeout boxes to drop in the trash can near the road.

He showed me around the village, making small talk, both of us ignoring the dirty looks from civilian and shinobi alike, though the higher their rank, the less antagonistic they became. I could feel people watching me even though no matter how hard I tried, I couldn't find them and I was unwilling to draw on the Kyuubi's chakra.

Hours later, Michi and I stopped at one of the training grounds, secluded from the rest of the village.

"Ever want to see how you match up against another trained Jinchuuriki?"

"I hope that will never be necessary. Besides, you have at least a decade of experience on me."

He nudged my shoulder. "Come on, I want to see what you got!"

"You're forgetting two things: first, I'm a Chuunin medic, and second, we are still inside the village walls."

"You have the Kyuubi at your command, and the special forces won't let it get out of hand."

"No, thank you."

"Come on, brat!"

"You'd be fighting the Kyuubi, not me, and I know that's not a fair matchup. Besides, the Kyuubi is feeling lazy today and doesn't want to."

 ** _I am actually in favor of this matchup._**

 _No, you're not. Shut up._

 ** _Yes, I am, but I can see why this might be a problem._**

 _Exactly._

"You're bluffing."

"Think what you want."

He shrugged but didn't press the point. It wasn't that I was unwilling to spar, I just didn't want to fight him.

"Wanna race?" I asked instead.

"Okay? Rules?"

"Kawarimi only." I pulled out three dozen practice senbon and threw them in two lines across the clearing, varying distances apart, the last four senbon landed in a boulder opposite us. "The object is to grab one of the senbon in the boulder and bring it back behind the line." I tossed one of my sticks on the ground to mark the starting point.

"Are you sure about this?" He asked warily.

"Yeah, my sensei used to time me to see how fast I could make a circle on the training grounds before I graduated."

"Normally, Kawarimi races is pre-Genin training."

I rolled my eyes. "The larger the ratio between body mass and the object your switching with the more chakra control it takes. Replacing with senbon takes a hell of a lot of concentration and a generous scoop of skill."

He shrugged. "On my mark. Three, two, one, go!"

In a blur, we sped through the course. I won, landing with a whoop and turning to see Michi on his hands and knees, halfway back, gasping for air.

I swapped with the senbon nearest him. "You alright?" I asked warily, kneeling beside him. One of the people watching revealed themselves, hovering at the edge of the clearing

"You find this fun?" He asked incredulously, recovering quickly.

"Yeah, I have really good chakra control, so it's a challenge, most exercises aren't."

He pressed the senbon he retrieved into my hand. "Your training is insane."

"Not really," I protested with a shrug. "Challenges are fun."

"Back up, did you say that most chakra control exercises don't even challenge you?"

"Yeah, thanks to medic training and a manipulative sensei."

He stared at me incredulously as I impertinently poked him in the cheek, grinning.

"I beat you."

"You are a child."

"Yup."

I barely saw him move as he pushed me and sent me sprawling backwards. Cheekily, I stuck my tongue out at him, enjoying the immaturity and the person at the edge of the clearing vanished.

"Hold up!" I exclaimed and pulled off my medic pouch, fishing through it for the right storage seals. I handed one to him and took the other, unsealing a water balloon and tossing it in his face, cackling manically.

He unsealed his own, but I had already showered the clearing with senbon and replaced myself. He soaked a senbon instead of me. I threw another from my new position, but he was a Jōnin, and easily ducked, launching another at me in return. I waited until the last second before making several replacements at once, tossing three balloons from three different angles.

He avoided them all and retaliated so fast the balloon burst in his hand from the power of the throw. I doubled over laughing, but before I could finish the first guffaw, he forced me to dodge another.

"Kichiro: two. Michi: zero." I sang out, in between each use of the Kawarimi.

"You're going down, little kid." He appeared behind me with a shunshin and I barely escaped him cracking a water balloon over my head, only to have him appear behind me a second time and succeed. After that surprise, he landed several more hits and I landed none, until I got fed up and doused the entire clearing with an overpowered water jutsu from the sky, only to be pelted with three more balloons in the process. Before he could escape the falling water, I turned the entire training ground into slick mud, sucking the two of us up to our knees.

We both got soaked, but both of us were laughing and sinking further into the mud.

 ** _I never expected your idiocy to work, but congratulations, brat, you just gained an unconditional friend through the most immature and unorthodox method I know of._**

 _The Tsuchikage wants him to gain my trust, for the two of us to be friends, so he has to go along with pretty much anything I want to do. A harmless water fight is something anyone can genuinely enjoy, even if it's ninja-style. Everyone needs time to just goof off. Jinchuuriki, especially in Iwa, are rarely just happy. Besides, I haven't done anything stupid in months and I'm overdue. And the only reason he's the most powerful is because he's the oldest._

 ** _I was just making a comment, I didn't ask for your philosophical reasoning._**

I rolled my eyes.

"On the souls of my predecessors, may they rest in peace, what the hell happened here?" I heard the Tsuchikage's voice snarl at the edge of the clearing.

I scrambled out of the mud and opened my mouth to explain, but Michi grabbed my arm and pulled me behind him. "I apologize, Tsuchikage-sama," he said, staring down the Kage. "I just got carried away showing off to our village guest."

I opened my mouth to protest and say I could clean it all up in a few minutes, but the Kyuubi cut me off. **_Stay silent, you are in a very dangerous position right now._**

 _What do you mean, 'dangerous'? It was just a water fight, just innocent fun._

 ** _The idiot in front of you just took a fall for you that no one had to take. The Tsuchikage knows exactly what happened, he's been watching the entire time. His appearance, question, tone, even the killing intent he's letting off was all staged to judge your reaction, to see if you would defend your supposed new friend and take the heat for him._**

 _How the hell did you come to that conclusion? Why can't I just fix the situation?_

 ** _If you say a word, your Jinchuuriki friend will be put down like an animal. He just declared his loyalty to you. If it wouldn't get him executed on the spot, damn the consequences, he would probably defect to Konoha._**

 _You're overreacting. A lifetime of mental conditioning can't be thrown away that easily._

 ** _The 'mental conditioning' in Konoha is much, much different from Iwa. Act like you have no idea what's going on, act scared, act confused, but do not say anything._**

I ignored the Kyuubi and opened my mouth to speak, but Michi's hand tightened around my arm in warning.

 _What the hell is going on, Kurama?_

The Kyuubi locked my muscles as Michi spun, a long, jagged blade appearing in his hand and thrust it just underneath the left side of my ribs, up under my ribcage, and out through the back of my right shoulder.

Michi cackled over my scream as he jerked the blade out.


	33. Chapter 33

If I hadn't been a Jinchuuriki, I would have died within a minute, even with medical attention. Had I not been a medic, the Kyuubi would have been forced to flood my body with potentially deadly amounts of chakra to keep me alive, instead, he only shoved enough chakra through me to keep me conscious through the pain, and I focused on healing as much as I could as fast as possible. I focused on fixing the severed aorta first, then repairing the severed primary bronchi that fed into my right lung, then created a patchwork repair to the damaged organs. I started to repair the torn tissue in my lung when my legs, I didn't even realize I was still standing, collapsed.

Someone caught me as I fell, and dashed off, hopefully to the hospital. The Kyuubi made sure I never stopped until I managed to heal myself to the point I wouldn't die. During that time, the only sensations I processed was movement and the presence of Bijū chakra. The intense pain never eased, even when I finally lost consciousness. Every breath was painful, if unobstructed, and I felt like the sword was still tearing at my insides. It was worse than pneumonia, it was infinitely worse than any other injury I ever received. Internal organs were not supposed to be able to feel that much pain!

After the first few cycles into somewhat-consciousness, I realized that full consciousness wouldn't come for a long time without the help of another medic, which caused me to temporarily freak out when my barely-audible croak for a medic was met with being laid down on burning hot sand and force-fed water.

Someone was talking to me urgently, but I only repeated 'medic' and 'help', hoping they got the idea that I needed a doctor at the very least. Later, I would find out that I had been speaking in English, which did me absolutely no good.

I healed most of the internal damage, but the shattered shoulder blade, clavicle, and the top part of my humerus were a lost cause, as well as all the damaged ligaments and muscles. They would need surgery to fix, chakra could only do so much. Somehow, it only made everything hurt more.

I wasn't sure how long it took, but eventually, the near-constant movement and regular force-feedings of water during my semi-conscious moments ceased, replaced with a hard bed and three pairs of hands seeming to almost constantly be touching me. The pain receded rapidly, so I couldn't complain. I was still force-fed bad-tasting liquids on a regular basis.

Finally, I woke up, healed enough to interact with my surroundings.

Michi leaned over me the second I opened my eyes. "Kichiro-kun? Are you awake this time? Do you remember me?"

I moaned and pulled away slightly. "Y-you almost killed me," I managed, throat sore from disuse, or screaming, I wasn't exactly sure which.

"Sorry about that. The good news is that you're going to be fine."

"Where am I?"

"That's part of the bad news."

"Iwa?"

"Tetsu no Kuni."

"We're both ninja. How the hell are we not dead?"

"Our hosts don't know that. They think we're civilians who met on the road on our way to find work in Kumo."

"I need to get back to Konoha." I struggled to sit up.

"No," Michi snapped coldly, pressing a specific point on my chest.

I slumped back with a whine of pain. "What happened?"

"Short version or the long one?"

"Short one first."

"I restarted the war between Konoha and Iwa. Iwa is suffering, considering everything I know about the village got sent to Konoha and every other village. We're staying in Tetsu no Kuni until it's over."

"You bastard!" I gasped and he pressed on my injured shoulder in retaliation, sending lines of fiery pain through my torso. I nearly blacked out before he let go.

"Let go of the poor child!" A woman's voice shrieked. "How many times do I have to tell you not to mess with him? I don't care who you are, you leave my patient alone! Get out!"

"Yes, samurai-sama." Michi quickly left, leaving me alone with the woman.

"Poor boy, I hope you're not bleeding again. Don't worry, I'll keep the nasty man away from you until you can properly sock him in the jaw. How are you feeling? What am I thinking, of course you feel awful! Do you think you can sit up for me?"

I didn't get much of a choice in the matter.

"Good, good, you'll be up and about in no time. Sit tight and I'll get you something to eat." She stood up and started to leave as I swung my legs over the edge of my bed. "No, no, no, you're not getting up just yet. You might feel a lot better than you did before, little Uzumaki, but you still should have died from that wound. You're lucky your friend here got you to a medic-nin then to me. Stay in that bed."

I lay back obediently, one leg hanging over the edge of the bed. She bustled out, but an unfamiliar man stopped her in the doorway with a few words. She nodded once and slipped out. He closed the door behind him and pulled a thick slat of wood across it, locking it. He stepped forward and held out a single chopstick. I took it, confused, but the second I wrapped my fingers around it, he snatched it out of my hand and pointed a long blade at my neck.

"Ninja are not allowed in Tetsu no Kuni. What are you doing here?"

"How—"

"Civilians may still respect the Uzumaki name, but clan names mean nothing to me. What is your real name and rank?"

"Kichiro. I'm Uzumaki Kichiro, Chuunin medic of Konohagakure. I did not intend to come here and I will leave immediately."

He took a step forward and pressed the tip of his sword into my sternum. "You're still a ranked ninja in my house, most likely a highly skilled prodigy considering your age and the Konoha ANBU tattoo on your shoulder. From the seals on your forehead, palms, chest and the soles of your feet, you're at the very least connected to someone on the very short list of Konoha seal masters. Why shouldn't I kill you?"

"Look, you're overestimating me. Konoha sued for peace just over five months ago. The Hokage's son and I were supposed to be Iwa's prisoners in order to maintain the peace. As long as we were safe and unharmed, peace would last. The ANBU tattoo is to explain my absence in Konoha and stop Iwa from attempting anything funny on me. I don't have a mask, uniform, or skills to back it up. I'm a Chuunin, yes, but I'm a medic first and foremost, and the rank was mostly a reward for a few medical heroics while Konoha was fighting Suna and my sensei pushing me up the ranks to take foreign attention off my little sister. Konoha wants their Uzumaki allies back, but I don't have the talent or knowledge to resurrect the Uzumaki Fūinjutsu style. I won't hurt you, your family, or your friends unless they hurt me first, I swear it on everything I care about."

Without taking his eyes off me, the man took two steps backwards and opened a trunk at the foot of the bed, pulling out my bokken and tossing it on my lap. I made a point not to reach for it. "I found this sealed in a scroll disguised as a letter from a sister of yours that your friends didn't throw away when they presumably tossed the rest of your gear. You're the student of the White Fang and training in Kenjutsu."

"I'm not even good enough to be given a full blade."

"You're still the White Fang's student."

"Every word I said is true, I swear. I mean no one harm, I don't even know how I got here or how long I've been out of commission and I'll leave as soon as you'll let me."

"Why should I trust a ninja?"

"I don't know!" I snapped, losing my cool. "I don't care what you think or feel, I just want to go home! I'm sick of the fighting and the suspicion and the mind games—argh!" I bit off the rest of what could only be considered a temper tantrum.

"How old are you?"

"Nine—wait, I'm ten now, I turned ten shortly after I made it to Iwa."

"Give me your hand." He sheathed his sword and reached into his pocket.

"Why?" I shrank even further away from him, clamping my hands to my chest.

"If you want to stay here, just do it."

"I don't want to stay here! I want to go home!"

"Well, you can't, kid. The borders of Tetsu no Kuni closed three days ago, no one is allowed in or out."

"I have to try. That means I've been out of contact for three days and—"

"You've been here for almost two weeks, kid. The only people with any reason to believe you're alive are in this house."

"I have to tell—" I started to bring my hands together to summon Kanon, but the man grabbed my wrist and ruined the jutsu. I screamed in pain as he twisted my injured arm outwards and clamped a manacle around it, chaining me to the iron bedpost. "Let me go, please, I just want to go home!" I clutched my throbbing shoulder and tried to use medical Ninjutsu to ease the pain, but my chakra was inaccessible. "Let me go! Please!" I begged as he snatched the bokken off my lap and marched towards the door.

He slammed it so hard the door swung back open a crack. "A traveler you found who had been attacked by ninjas, you said." The man snarled at the two Iwa Jinchuuriki. "A Konoha patrol and their medic healed the worst of the damage, you said. Are the two of you blithering idiots to make up a story to bring a ninja into the house of two samurai? Are you trying to get yourselves killed? The scars on his hands and arms aren't from working in some blacksmith shop, they're from training with live blades, and I suspect some of them are from torture! The black symbols are Fūinjutsu, not tattoos. He doesn't have calluses on his hands because he's trained with senbon!" Handing me a single chopstick to see how I took it made more sense now. He was looking at my grip to see whether I automatically grasped it like a potential weapon or just an object. "The two of you are a pair of blithering idiots!"

I heard Michi stammering incoherently alongside a second, vaguely familiar voice I couldn't place.

"The boy inside that room could kill all of us with a single chopstick if pushed to it. You probably buried his gear somewhere, but did you keep his hitai-ate? Good, at least you have a few brain cells between you. Give it to me. Now."

There was some rustling and I tried to see through the crack in the door, but the woman stood in front of it.

"Thank you. You're lucky he's a loyal nin or I would kill all three of you. Outside, my fields need to be tilled. Both of you, get on it." There was a quick shuffle of feet and they left in a hurry.

"Ryouta, you of all people know how dangerous Konoha nin can be!"

"I don't kill children."

"He's a shinobi!"

"I know."

"Then why? If we nurse him back to health he'll only turn on us!"

"He won't, that I know for certain."

"You spoke with him for two minutes. How can you know?"

"I just do. Leave it, we're close enough to Hi no Kuni that the boy can get away free as soon as he's healed. Just take care of him. His name sounds familiar; I'm going to find out why. Put the other two to work however you can. It will hopefully keep the two idiots out of trouble."

"Are you sure they're not shinobi as well?"

"I'm almost certain they are, but they're not from Konoha or they would have hopped across the border and rejoined their comrades."

"Then why are you letting them stay?"

"They're running from something big enough that they would give up their weapons, throw away their pride, dull their reflexes, and suppress their chakra to dangerously low levels in order to pass as civilians here of all places, the only place shinobi can't reach. I don't know how the boy plays into this, but I'm going to go figure it out. I'll be back before dark. You can give my plate to the boy if he's still awake. Did I miss anything?"

"Please don't get hurt, Ryouta-kun."

"I won't."

I heard a door close and the sounds of cooking followed. I laid back down on the bed and turned my face into my pillow, quickly falling back asleep to escape the building pain from the injuries.

(-_-)

Waking back up was incredibly painful. My entire body ached and the slight fever common in major injuries had risen.

"Wake up, boy," someone snapped above me. I turned my had away from the voice and tried to settle back, ignoring the pain, but it was no use.

I blinked open my eyes to see the samurai standing over me. I automatically sat up and scrambled backwards, pressing my back against the wall.

"Are you awake or just doing that ninja sleep-fighting." When I didn't respond, he continued. "I went into town yesterday to figure out why your name sounded so familiar."

"Just let me go and you never have to see me again."

"You're quite the international character."

"I don't care."

"A perfect Jinchuuriki, enough Fūinjutsu skill to seal a Bijū, the skill to negotiate a temporary peace between Iwa and Konoha, and the willingness to give yourself up for it."

"Good, you know what I can do. Let me go."

"You won't make it a kilometer out that door."

"I'll be fine."

"Does your power to raise the dead includes yourself?"

"I don't raise the dead."

"Does that imply you can?"

"What do you want?"

"I want to know why you're a medic when you could be ten times as powerful as you are now."

"And then you'll let me go?"

"It'll be a start."

"No deal."

He returned to the trunk and picked a plate off it then held it out to me. I didn't take it. "Eat."

"And you'll let me go?"

"No, but if you don't, I'll force-feed you."

I turned my head away from him as he held the food under my nose. It smelled good, considering how hungry I was. He wasn't going to kill me unless I attacked him first, which I wasn't going to do unless he proved himself an enemy. From what I could tell, he wanted to help. All I had to do was make it no longer worth the effort.

I took a deep breath and steeled myself before slamming my head back towards the metal bedpost as hard as I could in an attempt to knock myself out. His reflexes were much faster than I anticipated and caught my head before it could connect. He raised his eyebrow at me as I glared back.

"I was the prison master for the samurai army before I retired, kid, you'll need a few more decades of experience to pull one over on me."

I kept my jaw tightly closed as I jerked away from his touch.

"Tell me, why aren't you cooperating?"

"I'm not going to hurt you or anyone else here, I just want to leave, yet you've chained me up simply because I wield chakra instead of a blade. You threatened me without provocation so I see no reason to cooperate and give myself false hope that you'll be reasonable." He blinked in shock. I scowled and stared at the bedcovers in annoyance.

"I apologize for giving you the wrong impression."

"If you know who I am and what I've done, you'll know that it's important for me to get back to Konoha. I am a Jinchuuriki, so when Konoha figures out I'm still alive and being held here, a team, most likely consisting of my sensei and several ANBU, will arrive and by then the situation will be beyond anyone's control. Let me go and no one will ever know I was here."

"That sounds like a threat to me."

"It's not a threat, it's a fact, but if it takes a threat to make you let me go, I'm perfectly willing to oblige."

"And what might that threat be?"

"I'm a Jinchuuriki and the little chakra suppressor you've stuck on me can't contain several tails of Bijū chakra at once. You'll have three shinobi nations bearing down on this house the instant the Kyuubi's chakra is sensed and I'll be free to run home. Iwa recently lost one of their Jinchuuriki so they'll be especially aggressive trying to locate a replacement."

For the briefest of moments, alarm flashed across his face, then he leaned forward both hands on the mattress, his face a foot away from mine. "That's an impressive claim. Tell me, are you willing to follow through on it?"

My breathing quickened and I unconsciously tried to pull back and escape his intensity. "I wouldn't make the threat if I wasn't willing to follow through." I stated as evenly as I could, but he was right. It would take a lot to make me follow through with that.

"I've met toddlers who can lie better than you."

"Let me go."

"And if I agree, what will you do first? Don't lie to me, I'm already low on patience."

"Contact my village and tell them I'm alive but injured."

"And after that?"

"Do whatever the Hokage wants me to do, most likely set off for home."

"And how will you deal with your injuries, lack of gear, and the incomplete information you have?"

"I don't know; I'll figure it out."

"Do you have any idea how ridiculous you sound?" He stood up straight.

"I don't care."

He pinched the bridge of his nose. "Eat that plate of food and I'll write a message to be delivered to your Hokage that confirms you are alive, your location, and condition. What is your ninja registration number and verification code?"

I glared.

"That's the best deal you will get. Any connection you want with anyone or anything outside this room will go through me or my wife."

"I don't have any codes, but I can seal it so only a blood relative can open it, that is verification enough."

He nodded, moved the plate within reach of my good arm, then left.

(-_-)

The next person I saw was the woman from before. It was pitch black except for a lamp on a small table beside me. I started to push her away with my good arm, but she pinned it to my chest.

"Easy, little one, I'm just changing the dressings. There's the beginnings of an infection and I don't want it to get any worse.

"My shoulder, how did you fix it?" I asked, forcing myself to relax.

"It's most certainly not fixed, young man. Luckily, the blade missed your ribs and only took a chunk out of the edge of your scapula."

"Oh, I thought it was worse."

She flicked my forehead.

"Ow! What was that for?"

"Every major organ in your body except for your brain, heart and spinal cord was damaged."

"Just a flesh wound!" I chirped.

"I've had comrades die from less."

"I can fix the worst of it," I murmured as she pulled off the dressings.

"In order to do that, I would have to release the chain to give you access to your chakra. I know better than to think you'll let me replace it without a struggle. You'll be fine, if laid up for a lot longer than you would like."

I grinned crookedly up at her and when she turned to place the soiled bandage beside the lamp, I swung my foot at her throat, letting out a whimper of pain as the attack placed all my weight on my injured shoulder. I figured a muscle or four had detached from the bone, it was the only explanation I could think of for the amount of pain it caused. The rest of the wound didn't hurt nearly as much since the only damage left was in the connecting tissue and the muscles in my abdomen. She caught the attack for her throat, but missed my other foot and my toes connected with her solar plexus, knocking her back several steps. The leather armor she wore muted the blow. I grabbed the oil lamp and threw it at her feet, forcing her to take several steps toward the door and collided with the man as he rushed in. Luckily, the oil didn't catch fire.

I grabbed the hand trapped in the manacle and dislocated my thumb. My wrist was far too small for the manacle, so another chain had been tangled around it inside of the manacle. It took me every second the man stopped to make sure his wife was alright to free my arm. The second my hand was free and I could draw on my chakra, I ducked under the man's first attack, feinted towards the window I would just barely have fit through, and then dashed towards the door.

I was two steps away when the woman stepped in my path. I bent backwards to avoid her blade and planted my good arm on the ground in a backbend, cursing in pain as it pulled at the healed portion of the wound. I kicked upwards and struck the nerves of her wrist with my knee, forcing her to drop her blade. With a pained whine, I twisted onto my bad arm to catch the blade with the sole of my foot and generous amounts of chakra, and hitting the ground hard on my stomach to avoid a kick. I rolled onto my back and made eye contact with the man towering over me. If I let the blade follow its current trajectory, I could have driven it through the joint where his femur attached to his pelvis, probably shattering the head of the femur to the point where he would never walk again. I didn't want to hurt him, he was trying to help, even though it only did more harm than good.

I redirected the blade down with a scream of pain, swinging it in a circle a few inches off the ground, forcing the couple to jump in the air to avoid losing their feet, like a morbid game of jump-rope.

The sword skittered deeper into the room as I let go of it and I gouged a divot the size of my foot into the cobblestone floor as I took off, shooting past the woman and out of the room like an arrow from a bowstring.

I barely managed to open the window before I crashed through it and tumbled out into the snow, dressed only in a pair of civilian shorts, cursing the early winter. I glimpsed the man behind me in the windowsill as I took off, my gait crooked as I clamped both hands over the hole in my abdomen to slow the blood leaving a very obvious trail. A civilian could follow it without much problem. When I glanced over my shoulder with blurry eyes, he was much faster than I anticipated. I couldn't shunshin, not when I hadn't practiced in months and couldn't do it properly to begin with. I let him race after me, I had nothing to throw to slow him down, and waited until he was barely within arms' reach and about to grab me before I dropped into the snow, grabbed his foot, and tried to launch him into the air.

He twisted his foot to avoid my hands and sprawled on top of me. I beat at his side with my elbow, but the leather armor absorbed the entirety of the blow. I could channel chakra into my punches, but it enhanced the already existing bones and muscles, which made me stronger and tougher, it couldn't level mountains unless I bulked up to giant size.

I didn't know what prompted them to wear the non-traditional armor, but it was causing me some serious problems. The strike to the woman should have had her doubling over for at least a minute and I should have broken the man's ribs before he pinned me down.

"Kai!" I heard someone shout, their voice distant, and foreign chakra jolted through me. Lights appeared, shining down brightly. I wasn't outside, or in the samurai's house. My arms were pinned down to a stone floor by Michi, who had a knee on my chest and a hand underneath my head, while someone else pinned my hips and legs. I felt infinitely worse than before as they let go so I could roll over and dry-heave. "How the hell did he get put under a Genjutsu? We've been watching him this entire time! He still has the Kyuubi's chakra running through him, it shouldn't be possible!"

"I don't know, but if someone can get past us, it means we need help," I heard Michi murmur.

"Konoha will kill us and he can't walk himself out in front of a border patrol!"

"We have to try."

"What about one of the smaller countries?" The second voice sounded familiar, but I still couldn't place it, even though it was the same voice from the Genjutsu.

"Konoha and Iwa would destroy them if they found out."

"Fine, let's go die in Konoha."

"If Kichiro backs us up, we'll be fine. I'm pretty sure. Konoha is too nice to kill anyone asking for shelter. I hope."

* * *

 _Author's note: A big thank you to all of my favoriters, followers, and especially my reviewers! I love you all so much! It makes me smile and do a little dance every time I see a new review._

 _Funny story: I tried to start a project the other day, translating the first chapter of this into Spanish but I hit a rather large roadblock: I don't know enough Spanish. I've only taken one semester of Spanish and I only have elementary conversation skills and no composition skills whatsoever. (necesito practicar mi español) As you can see, I'm still speaking simple sentences in Spanish. Silly me then went on to say to myself: "I know enough ASL to translate this!" Reasonable me responded with: "You learned ASL, not signwriting." Silly me: "What about German?" Reasonable me: "You know about fifty words of German and no grammar yet." As you can see I have a dilemma._

 _Is anyone interested in translating the first chapter of this story (hopefully more) into a language of their choice? If so, PM me and we can work out details. I just think it would be really cool to have this in more than one language._

 _Another big THANK YOU to my reviewers!_


	34. Chapter 34 - Part 6

When I woke up properly, I was lying in a hospital bed. There was someone sitting in the corner of the room next to what looked like a crib. I lifted my head slightly and saw one of Sakumo's dogs curled at the foot of the bed.

It was the middle of the night. I didn't feel ready to have anyone fussing over me and asking questions. I didn't want to move, so I spent several hours watching the moonlight rise on the wall in front of me, waiting for it to hit the clock on the wall that was just barely shadowed enough so that I couldn't read it. Out of nowhere, a baby started to cry in the corner of the room. I could see the person sitting in the corner of the room stand up, then heard a male voice humming to the easily calmed infant, but no matter how hard I strained my eyes, I couldn't figure out who it was.

Finally, the man stepped into the moonlight, smiling down at a silver-haired child nursing from a bottle. I almost didn't recognize Sakumo. He wore civilian clothes and his sabre was nowhere to be seen. I just watched, gaping, as he walked past my bed several dozen times, holding the child long after it had fallen back asleep and singing lullabies. Eventually, it turned to speaking, but I couldn't quite understand him. The baby woke once the sky outside began to lighten, making noises back.

A soft knock came from the door before Tsunade pushed her way inside. She laid what I recognized as my medical file on a rolling table then pushed the dog off the bed. At the animal's indignant yelp, Sakumo glanced up and returned the now-sleeping infant to the crib in the corner while the summon disappeared.

Tsunade hovered near the edge of the room and the two had a conversation I couldn't hear, periodically glancing at me. Eventually, Sakumo nodded and slowly walked towards me, his hands held out as if he thought I was going to attack him. "Welcome back, Kichiro," he murmured and sat down on the bed beside me. "There were several extremely powerful Genjutsus on you when you arrived, and you were brought here by both Iwa Jinchuuriki." That was good to know. "You're not under an active Genjutsu right now, as far as we can tell, but it might be a while before you get back on your feet."

Tsunade took over the explanation, but stayed near the door. "You did a passable job healing yourself up so you wouldn't die. Medics managed to patch up everything life-threatening, but they can't do anything until they know you're free of the Genjutsus. Someone from the interrogation department will have to take you through the captive recovery program."

I opened my mouth to respond, but Sakumo shook his head. "Don't try to talk, your throat is extremely raw, you'll only hurt yourself.

Tsunade continued. "You don't have any way to determine whether or not this is a Genjutsu, which is why we haven't given you any information you can't get on your own. Anything we tell you now will be called into question later."

I nodded.

"Basically, captive recovery is just to force you to dispel any Genjutsus the medics missed, make sure you're clear of anything anyone might have put inside of you, seals that might have been applied, and there's no latent injuries, then a Yamanaka will go through your memories since you left to get a more accurate report, since only they can tell the difference between a Genjutsu memory and a real one."

I nodded again, I already knew the procedure, I had to perform it twice before the war began on several Genin who wouldn't allow any adults near them after being imprisoned by bandits for a week.

Sakumo glanced at Tsunade and she knocked twice on the door to let in a small man with fake glasses. Sakumo left with his son, immediately followed by Tsunade, leaving us alone. Before doing anything, the man blacked out the windows and lit a candle, placing it on a rickety table between us.

Dispelling a general Genjutsu in battle was simple and straightforward, a pulse of chakra usually did the trick. When targeted directly with a Genjutsu, it gets harder, simply because whoever is doing the targeting knows how their target thinks and how to make sure they don't even realize they were in the Genjutsu to begin with. Even then, once identified, it could be dispelled the same as a general one. In battle, Genjutsu was a distraction, like throwing sand in the opponent's face or rolling marbles underneath their feet to get some breathing room. With time and some talent, it could be used on a captured opponent, and if they're properly restrained, they are unable to dispel it, whether they know they're under a Genjutsu or not. A Genjutsu master could layer countless Genjutsus, each only altering a tiny aspect of their reality, until there was no way to determine what was real and what wasn't.

It was terrifying to think about and even worse in practice, though it was an effective way to get information, because it could twist reality until their thoughts were vocalized. I resigned myself to learning an entirely new code system for messages.

The most disturbing part was that the Kyuubi didn't or couldn't break me out of them.

I was glad my stomach was empty, because I snapped several Genjutsus that had altered my sense of balance and general equilibrium. The man walking me through the process never gave his name, and I didn't ask.

It didn't take long for me to give up on keeping track of time. The candle never seemed to burn down and I figured he didn't want me knowing how much time passed.

I wasn't exactly sure when I passed out from exhaustion, but when I woke, the man and the candle were gone and the room was lit by faint sunlight. Sakumo sat on the bed beside me, one hand on the side of my face, the other holding tight to my hand.

He smiled lightly as I made eye contact with him.

I opened my mouth to say something, I didn't know what, but he shook his head. "Don't try to talk, it'll only hurt." Sakumo shifted and put both hands gently on either side of my head, then pressed his forehead against mine. "You're safe, I promise," he said quietly, looking directly into my eyes before pulling away when the door opened. A Yamanaka stood on the other side of the bed. "Kichiro, Kichiro calm down and look at me," Sakumo said. I didn't even realize I was hyperventilating. "Kichiro, just focus on me."

"No—" I managed to say, but Sakumo was right, it hurt to force out the words. "Don't—" Sakumo pulled me upright and held me tightly against his chest, my face turned away from the Yamanaka.

"No one is going to hurt you, Kichiro. You're safe here."

Before I could protest, another hand was on the back of my head and I was unconscious.

I wasn't sure how much time had passed once I woke up, but Sakumo was pacing back and forth with an infant in his hands, crooning at the child. After a few minutes, he realized I was awake and sat down beside me, quietly introducing me to the child. I barely registered he was speaking. Only then did I truly realize that something had gone horribly wrong. I tried to skim through my memories, but there were gaps, massive gaps that were either from extremely dangerous Genjutsu or a powerful assortment of seals. I tried to sit up, but my muscles weren't responding. Sakumo disappeared for a moment then returned without the infant. Tsunade appeared seconds later alongside another medic I vaguely recognized as the Sandaime's wife. I fell limp as both leaned over me.

After a minute of watching healing chakra course through my torso, Tsunade murmured something to Sakumo and left. The Sandaime's wife ended the jutsu a minute later and followed Tsunade.

Sakumo gathered me up in his arms and just talked, repeatedly carding his fingers through my hair. I turned my face away from him to hide the tears dripping out of my eyes. An IV stuck out of my hand and I noticed that I had lost a significant amount of body fat and muscle. My body was young enough to regain it reasonably quickly, but I didn't remember losing the weight.

When I finally calmed down, Sakumo offered me a small bowl filled with some kind of liquid and a straw sticking out of it.

"It's just broth. You don't have to finish it, we just have to see if you can keep food down. Your stomach was damaged and the medics need to know how well it healed.

The smell made me hungry. With shaking hands, I guided the straw to my mouth with the hand that wasn't bandaged against my chest while Sakumo held me upright. When I had sucked down a quarter of the broth, Sakumo pulled it away and waited for it to settle in my stomach. When there were no ill effects, he let me consume the rest. I was still hungry, but Sakumo didn't offer anything more and my throat hurt too much to ask.

He laid me back on the bed and stared into my eyes with an unreadable expression. Eventually, I drifted off to sleep. When I woke again, Sakumo was gone and Kushina was lying on the bed beside me with a book propped up on the pillow beside my head.

"Nii-chan!" She exclaimed when she saw my eyes open.

My lips cracked as they stretched into a smile and the muscles ached, but I ignored it and just reached up to hug her.

"You're back," she breathed as she buried her face in my shoulder. Her touch was gentle, barely there.

"I'm back." I responded, my throat aching. "I'm sorry I left. I shouldn't have."

"It's okay, Nii-chan. You didn't have a choice. You never would have left if it wasn't important."

"I feel like I have something important to tell you but I can't remember what it is."

Kushina sat up on the bed. I relaxed against her hand as she brushed my bangs off my forehead and gently stroked my cheek, tracing one of the thin white scars I couldn't explain. "The Yamanaka said he managed access your memories from while you were in Iwa, however he said he didn't want to try to unlock the memories."

"Did they tell you what was in them?"

"No, everything about you is so classified that only Sakumo-sensei, the Hokage, and one or two others know. I was told that not even the Yamanaka was allowed to remember anything." She gently pulled the sheets off my torso to reveal more bandages than I expected—I thought I healed much more than that. "Is there any pain? Can you breathe?"

"I'm fine," I responded, wincing as she laid a hand over where I remembered the sword going in. The heat from her skin burned through the cool, damp bandages. It wasn't particularly painful, but I couldn't stop myself from tensing and squeezing my eyes shut. I was tired of the pain, sick of it. When I glanced down, there were several pinpricks of red soaking through the white linen. My right arm was bound against my chest, and the rest of my limbs were loosely restrained with bandages. The injuries were bad. "Can you unwrap it so I can see?" I asked her as pleasantly as I could, but her expression went from worried to irritated in an instant.

Instead of hitting me, she pinched my side. I tried to roll away, but couldn't move more than an inch.

The restraints were a recent addition, probably added after the last time I was awake and somewhat coherent for an extended period. I knew for a fact they weren't present before.

"Tsunade-sama says you should know your limits. Everything has been taken care of. You have nothing to worry about. Hokage-sama said that once you started talking to us, I would be given leave for a few months to stay with you while you recovered."

"You mean, the Hokage wants me under guard and Sakumo can't do it."

She grimaced. "No, I used my accumulated leave time to be here. This doesn't have anything to do with any scheming."

"I'm sorry, Kushina, I didn't mean—"

"It's okay. You can have a look at your file to see what the deal is. Your chakra is still a bit wonky from the Genjutsus, so I wouldn't recommend messing with it just yet." She put the folder across my hips, untied the restraints, and hurried out.

The room was empty except for a crib in the corner with a sleeping infant. I slowly propped myself up to look at the file, but it was all coded and gave me a headache trying to break the new code.

Several minutes later, arguing voices approached my door.

"—finished making sure of his loyalties less than an hour ago. You can't interrogate him already."

"Only Uchiha Madara has ever been reported to be capable of controlling the Kyuubi, and you confirmed that you're the only loyal Uchiha who might, might be capable of such a feat. Someone else has that ability and we need to know who." I automatically recognized the Hokage's voice.

"It can wait." Kagami responded firmly.

"It cannot, we've been fighting Iwa for months, and suddenly I'm finding out they may have more skills in reserve and our entire village could be compromised! I can't afford to wait!"

"He thinks he's been gone for six months!"

"I can't help whatever they did to him—"

"It was your mistakes that put him there in the first place!"

"I did the best I could."

"We can't do anything about the Genjutsu user, whether they're from Iwa or not. The boy is barely aware of where he is, much less what happened. Give him a break, time to process what is going on."

"There is no time. He's safe here, that's going to have to be enough."

"Stop and think about what you're doing before you go in there, Hiruzen. The boy already hates you because of that damned seal you put on him. The Yamanaka already went through his head and told you everything."

"Some of his memories were indecipherable."

"No matter how intelligent he is, he's still a child. Those memories are from before the war began, there's no indication that they have any connection. He's good at communicating his thoughts, but he's not perfect." The Yamanaka should not have looked at anything except what happened in Iwa. The violation of protocol irritated me, but I decided not to press the issue.

"You know that's not the reason, the Yamanaka said as much."

"Time and time again that boy has proven himself trustworthy and reliable. This antagonistic suspicion is completely unwarranted!"

"Kagami, you know as well as I that he's hiding something."

"You already confronted Sakumo about it, and he said he knew what it was. You can trust him."

"Can I? I trusted Danzō, only to find out he was going behind my back. The boy called him out on it like it was obvious!"

"Danzō made some mistakes, but he's still loyal and has proven it several times over! Did you ever ask the boy how he knew?"

"I was a bit preoccupied at the time with the two of them fighting in the middle of my office, the Kyuubi about to escape, and potential treason."

"Is that why you're suspicious of him? Because he noticed something you missed?"

"I asked Danzō about it, he has no knowledge of how the boy figured it out, and your student knows nothing of the situation."

"Of course he wouldn't admit to a then-nine-year-old inadvertently finding a hole in a network he managed to hide from everyone else. I don't know anyone who would, including you and me. For all we know, he has a perfectly reasonable and intelligent explanation for everything. Unless you can _prove_ he's untrustworthy, leave him be. The Namikaze boy and his sister have done some impressive stunts to make sure they could spend time with him. Somehow, despite everything, this war hasn't corrupted their innocence, so I'm advising you to _let the matter lie_. Over the course of this war, the three of them, as Genin, have done more for village morale than any Jōnin, and that includes you. Don't ruin it." Kagami stomped away.

After a long pause, there was a tentative knock at the door. I held my breath and didn't respond.

"Hokage-sama?" Sakumo's voice called out several seconds later.

"Hatake-san, I was just looking for you. Did you get the report on the ANBU patrol sent to assist the Chuunin on the Kiri border?"

"With all due respect, Hokage-sama, I officially retired from ANBU several months ago, I'm no longer authorized to report on ANBU activities. Are you alright?"

"I apologize, I'm just a little distracted right now."

"Are you ready to speak with Kichiro? Tsunade-hime said he would be waking up within the hour and you mentioned that you would need to."

A long pause preceded his answer. "No, no, it's not urgent. When will you be able to return to service?"

"Three days ago, my infant son was placed in the Bingo books and we agreed that I would be taken off active duty instead of leaving his defense to a team and holding up more resources."

"Your wife—"

"My wife died in childbirth," Sakumo cut in coldly.

"Right, my condolences. Apologies, I have work to do."

"Perhaps you should wait here to see Biwako-sama when she comes by. You don't look too well."

"Thank you, but no, I have work to do."

"You've said. I have to ask you to verify your identity." Sakumo growled, suspicious.

The walls hummed to life across the walls and door. An infant's wail sounded from the crib and I realized I wasn't alone in the room. Sakumo started to knock out a code I could barely hear on the wall. I slid out of the bed and walked on wobbly legs to the baby's crib. I made my hand glow with medical ninjutsu and held it just out of the child's reach, which immediately captivated the infant. I could control my chakra just fine, but I wasn't ready to attempt jutsu or heal anyone except myself. I didn't dare touch the infant while the Hokage responded with a verification code, or three.

A few seconds later, the security seals went down and Sakumo quickly entered, closing the door behind him, a bottle for the baby in one hand and a burp rag in the other.

"Did you just threaten the Hokage with a bottle?" I asked, hoarse.

"Kichiro!" He spun around in alarm. "You're awake! You're standing!"

"Yeah, babies crying and a very dangerous seal, that would kill a gnat without a verified chakra signature, activating is a bit difficult to sleep through."

"Sorry about that, I overreacted. Kakashi was born, then you came back with two Jinchuuriki and looking like hell, then some idiot put a bounty on Kakashi's head."

"Kakashi?"

"My son." He gestured proudly at the baby staring at my glowing hand. "Almost a month old!"

I didn't think Sakumo would even hear the response I wanted to give because Kakashi had caught sight of his father and was smiling in his direction.

Sakumo tucked the bottle into his pocket and lifted the child into one arm and throwing the other around my shoulders, steering me back to the bed. "Tsunade-hime will skin me alive if she finds out I let you walk around before you got one last check over."

"I'm fine." I protested. I wasn't fine. My limbs were shaky, but not as emaciated as my delirious memory recalled. My chakra felt strange and my balance was off, not to mention the ache from the injuries. I was well enough to be discharged though.

"Well, you're a bag of bones, so we'll go out and get you something as soon as she shows up and gives the all-clear. In fact, if you hold Kakashi, and feed him, I can get Tsunade right now. I'm sure you're more than ready to get out of the hospital. We're all ready for you to get out."

As soon as I sat down, Sakumo placed Kakashi in my arms and stuck the bottle in the baby's mouth. He was kind enough to leave the burp cloth before he zipped out of the room.

Before I could adjust my grip on Kakashi, who looked like he was about to cry at Sakumo's disappearance, he returned with Tsunade in tow.

"Hatake-san, I don't understand what the rush is!" Tsunade protested impatiently.

"I want some time with my student before his family of hellions get their claws in him and I don't see him for a few months."

Tsunade sighed in exasperation, but didn't refute the point as she performed a basic health assessment while I struggled with Kakashi. I swear he was giving me an evil grin and squirming just to give me trouble. In the back of my mind, something wondered why she didn't just use a diagnostic jutsu, but I ignored it in favor of not dropping the child of one of the deadliest ninja in the village.

"Take your spawn, Sakumo, he's being mean on purpose."

"He likes you!" Sakumo protested.

"You may be alright with getting tortured by an infant, but the rest of us aren't. At least the child isn't screaming again at being supposedly abandoned." Tsunade scowled as her hands flew through the familiar routine.

"It would be easier if you used chakra," I noted quietly to her.

Tsunade stiffened, but responded in a stiff voice. "I can't use medical ninjutsu anymore."

I frowned, not understanding. Tsunade glanced at Sakumo. "It's too much of a risk for him not to know," he said, sighing.

She took a deep breath and pulled two slips of paper off the inside of her wrists. My stomach churned as the disguise on her hands faded away to reveal deep scars around her fingers, hands, wrists, and halfway up her forearms. It had been a long time since I last treated anyone but myself, but just by looking at the scars, I could figure out what happened. Tsunade's hands had been bound with ninja wire and it had severed too many nerves for any other medic to repair. I'd healed several cases like that before, where not only the nerves were practically destroyed, but the chakra pathways as well. If the victim was bound for too long, the nerves would die and the chakra pathways would shrivel. Before I left, I hadn't had a chance to explain more than the basics of my technique to heal it, making me the only one able to help her. From the way she manipulated things in her hands, the seals gave her some control, but it needed her chakra, which was drawn from the undamaged tenketsu higher on her arm, but it was impossible to learn to heal others with new tenketsu once a ninja left their teenage years, their chakra just wasn't flexible enough. Using jutsu wasn't too big of a challenge, but medical techniques required much more control.

Tsunade pulled back and reapplied the seals before I could determine what I needed to do to fix the damage. "It's too late, even for you, Kichiro. The scar tissue has set."

I shook my head. "It would hurt like hell, but it's not too late. It's a simple surgery, It shouldn't take more than a half hour. I just have to destroy the scar tissue, reattach and reawaken the nerves, then the chakra pathways—"

"Chakra pathways? I thought you said you used a seal!"

"Not an actual seal, just part of the theory behind one. It only works on the chakra pathways."

"We'll talk about this later," Tsunade stated. "Kichiro, you're good to go, all three of you, out, now."

Sakumo picked me up, baby and all, and was out the window before I could say a word.

We landed outside his house and he set me down, taking Kakashi from me with ease. "Come on, takeout should be on its way."

"Where are my real clothes?" I asked, looking down at the hospital shirt and shorts.

"They went directly into the trash, the stuff that was in your pockets are in a box at my home. Somehow, your weapons made it back with you, as well as some of your gear, it's all sealed in a scroll, which is also in the box. I got you some new civilian clothes and put them under the sink in the main guest bathroom. Go down this hall and take your first right, then it'll be the second door on your left. I'll be in the main room right here." He jerked his head towards the room to the left. I nodded and set out.

To be frank, the house was huge. While the Hatake clan only had a small handful of members, it was made up entirely of well-respected Jōnin. Or, at least it was before the war. I was nearly certain Sakumo and Kakashi were the last two survivors. I found the bathroom without a problem and decided to bathe before returning to Sakumo. I sat in the tub and filled it with a few inches of hot water, painstakingly unwinding the bandages and healing myself. It took an hour and I had to empty the tub several times and refill it with clean water, but after an hour, what was left of the damage was nothing but dull pain and bright scarring. I could have healed the scar, but I chose not to. Scars like that could come in handy and I could always heal it later if I needed to. I pulled on the clothes then headed back to where Sakumo was feeding baby Kakashi.

I sat down across from him. "You have questions," he murmured as Kakashi started to drift off to sleep.

"How long was I gone?" I asked. I thought it had only been six months at the most, but I didn't trust my memory.

"Just over seventeen months."

I stiffened. "You're wrong, you have to be. It couldn't have been more than five or six months."

"I'm certain. It's the first week of October now."

"Where did I miss the time?"

"The Yamanaka said various sections of your memory had been intentionally locked away, which warped your sensation of time. He couldn't figure out how, but due to the content, he didn't try to undo it. Eventually, they will fail, but hopefully not until Konoha is in a position to handle the backlash they will cause on you. We're most concerned with the effects of the Genjutsu. Luckily, it wasn't as long-term as we originally feared. The day you spent with the Gobi Jinchuuriki until you started the dispelling process was influenced by Genjutsu. Not even the Yamanaka could determine what was real or not. We suspect it was from a third party, mostly because it wasn't manipulating you, just tormenting you by magnifying the pain, feeding you false images in the place of reality, causing you to move in ways that prevented further healing. The Jinchuuriki were significantly worse off, under a Genjutsu that forced loyalty for several years, if not more, but exposure to the Kyuubi's chakra in Iwa broke it and they faked it well enough until they could grab you and run."

"Are they still here?"

"Yes. They claimed they were willing to do anything to gain a village's trust and prove their loyalty once they had your assurance that Konoha was the right village, but they refuse to become missing-nin."

I slumped back in the chair, almost sliding off. Sakumo laid Kakashi on a thick blanket on the floor when a knock sounded from the door.

He returned a minute later with the takeout, which he placed on the coffee table and motioned me down to sit across from him. "Eat," he ordered, pushing a box towards me. I had no problem obeying. I was starved. As I grabbed the chopsticks, I realized it was nothing more than miso broth and a few vegetables. I reluctantly put the utensils down and picked up the bowl to slurp up the broth while Sakumo dug into a much more appetizing plate filled with meat and rice.

"There's more you're not telling me," I stated as I debated whether it was worth risking upsetting my stomach by stealing some of the more substantial food off his plate.

"There's a lot I shouldn't tell you."

"I'm sure you can say how Iwa reacted to their Jinchuuriki kidnapping me." Sakumo slapped my hand as I stealthily tried to snatch a bite of fish from him. I still managed to get the bite to my mouth.

"Iwa broke the treaty two months after it was established by having one of their clans attack Konoha. The Aburame were almost entirely responsible for driving them off. A second, much larger assault force made it partway into the Land of Fire before a group of sixteen Konoha Jōnin used a suicide jutsu to wipe out almost half of them. They retreated, but in the past few months, they've nearly regained the ground lost." Sakumo didn't meet my eye and his tone was flat.

"You were there," I surmised, abandoning my attempt to steal another bite.

"Yes," he answered quietly. "Kagami-sensei was in charge and most of the force sent out to stall Iwa had already died, it was just the core leftover. Sensei was in the thickest of the fighting and I was running support alone, trying to make up for the Chuunin who died. I was about to send up the signal for reinforcements, when one of the Jōnin ran back and ordered me to retreat as fast as I could. I started to pull back, but didn't get far before the Jōnin linked their arms and made a seal I didn't recognize. The entire battlefield stopped to watch in morbid fascination. Sensei figured out what they were doing and barely managed to get behind them, out of the line of fire. I don't know what they did, but I could only describe it as their spirits leaving their bodies. They swept through the battlefield in a long chain and anyone they touched died instantly. Iwa fled and in a minute, Kagami and I were the only living people left."

I lost my appetite in a hurry and set my chopsticks down.

"You coming back hasn't helped or hurt anything but our peace of mind."

"An entire division was lost in one battle?" I asked hollowly.

"Three divisions were sent out. It was a suicide mission to begin with, Kichiro. Two people came back and it was two people more than expected. We faced the entirety of Iwa's invasion force and put them on the run after five days of battle."

"That's a hundred and fifty people, at least, dead in a single battle, not including Iwa's casualties."

"Two hundred and eight Konoha ninja died in that battle. Most battles haven't been that costly, but there will be another one like it in the near future." Sakumo let that sink in before changing the topic of conversation to Kakashi. Over the next hour, I learned more about the month-old infant than I cared to.

I didn't ask about his wife, I didn't want to—I didn't want to know what happened. I could tell Sakumo was using everything he could to distract himself from her death. I let him ramble on until we finished eating. Only then did Sakumo direct the conversation back towards catching me up on events in the village.

Kiri and Suna had been completely defanged and were staying out of further conflict. Most of Suna's fighting force had been decimated. Sakumo boasted about how he figured out a way to cut the strings the puppet brigade with his unique sabre and attacked them directly, shattering the last of Suna's supposedly ironclad defense, which I had cracked with immunizations to their poisons. Even though he knew I would disapprove, he told me that Konoha had methodically cut down anyone who opposed them once they entered the village, civilian or shinobi, and destroyed any goods Suna could use for anything more than feeding themselves. If Suna had hard times before the war, their situation was ten times worse now. They wouldn't be raising a military for a long time, and it would be at least a decade before they started to recover.

In Kiri, because the Mizukage had chosen to surrender rather than follow in Suna's footsteps and lose most of his core fighting force in one go, the entire Land of Water was divided on the issue and it was extremely likely a civil war would break out as soon as the side opposing the Mizukage gained a leader.

I listened impassively, doing my best to detach myself from the implications and only taking in the facts.

Kumo knew when they had been beat and would have done almost anything to stop the periodic Bijū rampages. A promise of peace with Konoha was worth it, though only the Raikage and the highest ranked shinobi knew they gave up one Bijū to secure the other. The Hachibi Jinchuuriki, B, had sent several letters addressed to me through the diplomatic channels after an attempt to sneak off to visit me had failed when he was caught by Konoha patrols and sent home with a handful of bruises and a damaged pride. It was a good thing Konoha had a policy on only killing aggressive foreign Genin and tossing the rest back over the border a little roughed up. Content that Konoha wasn't greedy and willing to maintain the treaty where any other village would have broken it, Kumo opened negotiations for an alliance, which Konoha snapped up like a starving child scrounging for fallen pieces of rice.

Outside of the village, Konoha was holding its own against Iwa, and buddying up with Kumo. Inside, Konoha was a mess. I had easily put down the first civilian protest, but as soon as the Hokage regained control, the civilians rioted.

Enough ninja made it back to protect the shinobi clans from attacks and vandalism, as well as the merchants and shop owners who supplied shinobi. The Hokage created an actual program for the retired shinobi and Academy students, which led to an increase in Academy enrollment from the civilian sector. Children older than six didn't need parental consent to join said program, they only needed a retired shinobi, a significant number of whom banded together to create a formal roster to make it easier for the civilian children to approach them and find sponsors. Even though the Academy had been suspended, Genin were still making it into the ranks and with the help of the rest of the retirees, they were gaining the skills they needed to be promoted to Chuunin, even without their Jōnin senseis. The only rank not receiving a regular influx of new blood was Jōnin. The standards for Genin and Chuunin had been relaxed, but no one dared to mess with the standards for Tokubetsu Jōnin and Jōnin. Genin were now forced to run supplies and deliver orders into the field due to the losses the Chuunin had taken over the course of the war. Even so, for both groups, assignments to the front lines rarely lasted more than a few weeks for the most experienced; however, Jōnin assignments lasted for months at a time, and they were often forced to take back-to-back missions.

I knew it had to be worse for ANBU; they had to do it all without being seen, without the support and recognition Jōnin received.

The anti-shinobi sentiment only seemed to increase when the mentorship program exploded with success, which was one of the reasons the Hokage started to let the Genin run missions outside of the village, and created a boarding program to keep Academy students and Genin from being swayed away from shinobi life because of their parents or other adults.

Before I left, the martial law had been almost nonexistent and all the Hokages had taken a nonviolent approach, caving to most civilian demands, such at stopping ninja recruitment from civilian schools and public civilian places. Now, the Sandaime had been forced to institute the strictest laws and enforcement of them they had ever seen and the civilians were chafing against it. There was a 'single warning' policy the civilians hated the most. If they were caught breaking a rule, they would receive a red mark on the back of their hand that wouldn't wash off for several weeks. If they were caught again before the mark faded, they were fined or executed, depending on the severity. Illegal assembly and speech were executable offenses. Keeping lights on after curfew was fined.

What surprised me was that only full Jōnin and ANBU were exempt from the rules.

* * *

 _Author's note: My amazing reader, Nightmist96, has agreed to translate the first chapter into German! Many thanks to her!_

 _Thank you all for all the reviews! I love to hear from all my readers, good, bad, and indifferent! Leave a review, let me know what you think, even if it's just an anonymous winky face of appreciation!_


	35. Chapter 35

"It's not right," I snapped at Sakumo once he finished. "Tightening the rules and increasing the penalties, I mean."

"No, it's not, and no one likes it, but one of the most common complaints from the civilians is that the shinobi aren't subject to the law, that they can do whatever they wish. With the Uchiha police either dead or fighting and the rest of the Jōnin only in the village long enough to get some rest and spend a few hours with their families, shinobi seem a lot more approachable, so they're acting out."

"They're starting a civil war and the Hokage is only making things worse with the oppressive regulations and the terror campaign. The answer to disobedience isn't instituting more rules, that only adds fuel to the fire! Is the Hokage an idiot?"

"Calm down, Kichiro," he ordered. "Now is not the time to oppose or criticize the Hokage, we need to be unified."

"Unity isn't going to happen like this."

"You know better than to stand against the Hokage."

"I'm one of the few people who actually does!"

"Yes, insubordination seems to be a point of pride for you."

"Absolute power corrupts absolutely. I refuse to let people live under someone accountable only to themselves when I can do something about it!"

"You have to trust the Hokage—"

"No, I don't _have_ to do anything, I most certainly do not have to trust anyone."

Sakumo's head fell into his hand. "You haven't changed."

"What the civilians are doing is wrong, but that doesn't mean the Hokage is right!"

"But you are?"

"Not necessarily, but I know I have a new, valid perspective that can help."

"Look, I think you need to let the Hokage and his advisors figure it out on their own. You just came back and you're not supposed to be doing anything stressful for a few weeks."

"I'm still a medic, I won't overstretch myself."

"Maybe, but every time you go up against the Hokage, you've come out worse for wear. One of these days, you're going to accidentally step over the line."

"So? He won't kill me and it's not like he'll be able to lock me away and forget about me for very long, not with the war going on."

"You have no idea, do you?"

"What?"

"The Hokage put a lot of trust in you when he left the village with you."

"Yeah, and leadership wasn't in my contract with the village."

"He never rescinded your security clearance."

"Then he's even more of an idiot."

"Kichiro!"

"What? I was a hostage and he should have knocked my security clearance down to civilian level the second he regained control."

"Taking control of the village was meant to be your test for candidacy."

"What?"

"Any person considered for the post of Hokage has to pass a test of leadership. Yours was a bit early."

"I never agreed to be considered for the post of Hokage."

"It's not something you choose. Didn't you think it was strange that the Hokage left you in charge with almost no training and experience?"

"I figured he was setting up Konoha as a decoy, so he could launch a larger counter-attack with a home field advantage."

"No, the Hokage would never have tried something that risked fighting inside the village. Needless to say, you passed the test with flying colors. A fair head and firm hand in discipline, the ability to hold the respect of your peers and elders—"

"They were a bunch of kids!"

"They're your future subordinates. You have a good head for negotiating, policy-making—"

"I don't want this."

"Give it ten or twenty years and you could be the Hokage!"

"No, never."

"I know you well enough to see that you have a way to fix what you see as broken in this village that none of the rest of us understand. As Hokage you could do it."

He was right, but I knew better. "I'm certain I could fix it. I could set up a government that makes most people happy, but does that make me better than anyone else? I'll answer that: it makes me no better than people like Uchiha Madara who thought he could bring peace by holding everyone under his thumb. Unilateral action never turns out well, and I'm not going to make myself the villain by pushing my ideals on everyone else."

"Kichiro—"

"I'm going to go for a walk."

I stood up and marched out, my hands deep in my pockets.

"Hold on, Kichiro." Sakumo grabbed my arm on the way out. "Wear this." He pressed a conical hat into my hand. "To hide your hair and the seal on your forehead."

I jammed it on my head and marched out.

(-_-)

I ended up walking all over the village, just watching the civilians interact. No one recognized me and no one tried to stop me. A few hours after setting out, I saw a middle-aged store owner struggling to carry a large crate.

"What are you doing just standing there, boy? Give me a hand or move along."

I shrugged before taking half the weight of the crate, which I suspected was full of glass from the way it clinked, ignoring his suspicious glare and helped bring it inside. The place looked like the lab for a medieval mad scientist.

"The name's Hideaki."

"Kichiro," I mumbled back.

"You're strong for your age. Did you drop out of the Academy or something?"

I shrugged. "Chuunin."

"Why aren't you in uniform?"

I grunted.

He snorted. "My sons were shinobi. The younger got himself captured and mutilated in Iwa, came home in a box too big for him, and the older vanished into thin air. I got a letter confirming his death, but no body. Damn kid thought he could take on Hanzō the Salamander and the team who found him were hard-pressed to do more than identify his body. Their stuff is still upstairs in their room. Little bastards, they should have retired when I told them to. I could've set them up with almost any job they wanted. I'll give you the same advice I gave them, retire while you're still alive to."

"Can't."

"Why not?"

I shrugged. 'Because I'm a Jinchuuriki' didn't seem to be a very good way to continue the conversation.

"You're not much of a talker."

"What do you do here?" I asked, changing the subject.

"I fix things. Anything, really. Toys, clothes, pots, weapons, pets. It's good money, people don't seem to be able to do jack shit for themselves. Its fine with me, though. As long as I pay my taxes and keep my nose clean, nobody cares about grumpy old me. Good thing too, or I'd end up dead and stuck with my bastard sons again, considering the state of affairs. Just wait, in a few minutes, those crazy civilians are going to come marching down the street shouting and banging things. They do it every day. The only good thing about it is that things always get broken. Mostly people nowadays, since those idiots can't go to the hospital when they get hurt while breaking the law."

He sat down at a desk and started noisily tapping at an impressive dent in the side of a pot. I took a seat a few feet away and watched.

"What are you really doing, kid?" The dent slowly started to disappear.

"I was going for a walk. I don't really know anymore."

"Someone piss you off?"

"No, they told me some things I didn't want to hear."

He didn't have anything to say to that. A little while later, an angry shout sounded on the street outside.

"There they go again," the man grumbled. "I would increase my prices in the hope that they would stop being such idiots when it started hitting their pockets, but it won't do a damn thing and I might as well keep making money." He pulled out a roll of thread from a drawer as well as a small box of what appeared to be sewing needles.

"You really ought to sanitize those needles before you stick them in people."

He snorted. "It makes me feel better to know they might not spread their idiocy."

"They think they're doing the right thing, you know."

"It doesn't mean they thought of all the implications of it. Look kid, this is a civilian problem all of you ninja shouldn't be mixed up with in the first place. It happens every few years and it's only happening now because we're at war and things have gotten bad enough to need shinobi to disperse the protestors."

"Is that what most people think, or just you?"

"Depends on which 'most people' you're thinking of. The civilian populace, for the most part, is perfectly fine with the Hokage and military; it's just one faction is much more vocal than everyone else."

"I see."

At that, the first of the injured stumbled into the shop. "I'm gonna die!" The man panicked, clutching his arm.

"Then stop being an idiot and you won't," Hideaki rolled his eyes and peeled the man's hand away from the wound. I'd gotten worse cuts when training.

"The ninja attacked us!" the idiot exclaimed.

"Oh really? What building did you throw rotten fruit at this time?"

"We weren't doing anything this time!"

"I'll believe that when I see my miso soup come to life and dance like a geisha."

"I could oblige," I muttered to Hideaki so only he could hear. He just glared at me as he wrapped the man's arm and demanded twice the rate the hospital charged.

"You have family to see and whoever you walked out on to apologize to, kid, now get out of my shop." He tossed a few coins in my direction. I caught them with one hand. "For the help."

I shrugged and left. I wandered a few streets over, eventually stopping in front of a sweetshop for something to chew on as I made my way back to Sakumo's house, saving one of the Japanese-style donuts for Sakumo. I knocked softly on his door.

"Come in, Kichiro," he called. I warily let myself in, brushing off my feet on the front mat. Belatedly, I noticed I was still barefoot from the hospital, and entered the house, glancing in to the main room where I had left Sakumo. He was sitting on the floor with Kakashi propped up on his knees, playing with the baby. I stayed out of the child's line of sight, even though he probably couldn't see more than a few feet in front of him at best.

"Sweet?" I offered. He shook his head and I took a bite instead.

"Where did you get the money?" he asked dubiously, as it vanished a few seconds later. "Kushina changed the verification codes for your bank account and I don't have any money in the house."

I shrugged, unashamed of the supposed gluttony. I had certainly not gotten the number of meals I needed while in Iwa, and I was fairly certain it had been at least a week, if not longer since I last ate anything solid, excluding the current day. "Helped a guy move a crate. Nice man, he gave me enough to buy a whole box of these, but I ate all the others. I think it was partially a bribe for not squealing on the fact he stitches up and overcharges protestors as a side-job, but that's irrelevant."

"I'll pretend I didn't hear that. Anyways, are you going to be Kakashi's uncle or big brother?"

"I did not sign up for this," I answered.

"Brother it is," he turned to Kakashi. "To-chan has some work to do and you're going to stay right here with your big brother Kichiro inside the big, safe, sealed house while To-chan does his work, okay?"

Kakashi gurgled a response.

"I didn't sign up to be your baby sitter!" I protested, but Sakumo ignored me.

"Be good for your new brother!" Sakumo said cheerfully to both of us as he settled the infant in my arms. If it wasn't for the fact that Sakumo was a Jōnin and could _make_ me take care of his spawn, I would have walked away. "I just fed him, so would you be so kind as to burp him. I'll be back in an hour." Sakumo left in a hurry.

Kakashi smiled up at me in all his gummy infant glory, and I swear there was an evil glint in his eye. "Don't you dare forget that I can pretend to be completely incompetent at childcare and your father wouldn't suspect a thing."

He gurgled up at me as I took off my hat and sat down, picking up the burp cloth draped across the arm of the couch. After a few good burps and the need to clean up his spit-up, which somehow missed the rag and ended up on my shirt, twice, I tried to lay Kakashi down on his blanket, only to find the brat had caught a fistful of my hair and wasn't going to let go of his newest brightly colored toy. At least he only chewed on it and didn't try and pull.

"Good for you, you caught my hair, but it's not nice to grab people's hair, Kakashi, please let go."

He babbled back at me.

"Okay, you are much smarter than any infant your age ought to be, and I see that, but it doesn't make it okay, please let go."

His head hit my shoulder as he continued to speak baby into my clothes.

"I'm not your father, so I don't know what all your little sounds and motions mean. Be a bit clearer, please."

When he looked back up at me, I would swear he was giving me a stink-eye.

"Um, sleep is always a good thing. Why don't you go to sleep, and I'll go to sleep and neither of us has to deal with the other, what do you think?"

That look was definitely the stink-eye.

"Giving mean looks to almost-strangers isn't very nice, Kakashi."

He waved his hands in my direction.

"I'm not your father, I don't know what the hand waving means."

Kakashi smiled, and I swear it was the most diabolical thing I had ever seen.

"Why couldn't Sakumo have a normal infant?" I complained. "One that just wanted a diaper change, food, and to be held during long naps."

Kakashi's face twisted and suddenly he started to wail.

"I'm sorry, I'm sorry! You're a perfect baby even though you are way smarter then you ought to have a right to be! Please stop crying, I didn't mean to hurt your feelings! Why am I talking to you like you're twenty times your age? I doubt you're understanding more than a few words in every sentence. I think I lost it. Imagine that, I survive what amounts to torture, only to lose it when trying to take care of a baby. How the hell does that make sense? You know what, I'm blaming you, Kakashi. At least you've stopped crying now. That's a good thing, right? I don't smell anything so I just upset you somehow. How do I upset someone who is less than two months old with just words?"

When Kakashi only grinned at me with his fists in his mouth, I groaned and let my head fall back on the couch. He just gurgled at me before starting to squirm. I laid him on his back on the cushion beside me, but he started screaming the second I let go.

"Oh, shut up. If you want to squirm, you can lay on the couch. If you want me to hold you, then no trying to make me drop you, that's the deal." I swear he understood every word I said.

The screaming subsided, but he still cried until I picked him back up.

"You are a manipulative little brat; you know that?"

He let his head fall on my shoulder after sending me a satisfied smile, his hands in his mouth.

"I'll like you only if you help me troll your father."

Kakashi mumbled into my shoulder.

"If you're asking how, I have no idea beyond not letting anyone but him change your diaper. There's not much else you can do at this age besides make noises and scream. Um, yeah, maybe make your first word something funny, or refuse to speak at all and just give your father that evil grin of yours when he makes you try. I want to see the look on his face when your first word is a complete sentence like 'Kichiro is awesome' or something like that."

Grabbing two fistfuls of my shirt, Kakashi started to fall asleep.

"Sleeping upright isn't good for anyone's neck," I scolded lightly and shifted him to lie in my arms instead. After a minute, I changed my mind. "You know what, you're going to sleep safely by yourself, on your back. Babies are always supposed to sleep by themselves on their back."

I gently laid Kakashi on the blanket he had been sleeping on earlier and walked over to close the door that could be slid across the window to block out the majority of the light. Just as I reached out, Kakashi screamed.

"Oh, shut up, you're fine, unless you want to sleep with the sun in your eyes."

He quickly subsided into a pitiful wail as I blocked out the sun. When I crouched and awkwardly patted his tiny torso, he quickly stopped and rubbed at his eyes.

"See? You're just fine. Now, go to sleep, you're tired."

I stood up, and Kakashi screamed, but as soon as I crouched back down, he returned to smiling up at me.

"You're an evil little brat. If you were my kid, I would just let you scream, but you're not and Sakumo would kill me if he walked in and I was ignoring you, so what do you want?"

He grinned up at me and waved his arms. At least it wasn't an evil grin.

"Just go to sleep."

When I started to pull away, his face scrunched up.

"You just don't want to be alone," I scowled. "I suppose I can't blame you, you are only a month old after all, but your father is spoiling you. If you grow up to be a callous brat, I'm kidnapping you and fixing that problem very forcefully."

He gave me one of those sarcastic 'oh, really' looks.

"Do you doubt I could kidnap you or that I would be able to fix the problem? What am I thinking, you can't respond, I don't even know if you're responding to my tone or my actual words. Why don't you use your psychic connection with your father to call him back here? Maybe we could team up and torture him, instead of you torturing me."

Kakashi kicked his legs while chewing on his fists.

"I guess you like that idea. Too bad your father is a Jōnin and we won't be able to deprive him of sleep enough to make him crazy. Any ideas, Kakashi?"

I laid down in my stomach beside him and poked his side obnoxiously. It just made him grin.

"You gotta contribute more than legwork, kiddo. Besides, considering how you seem to understand me just fine, you have to be a genius and you're not going to make me, the normal guy, think of everything."

Kakashi's attention finally wandered away from me and his eyes drifted closed.

"Good baby, go to sleep."

There was a small bookshelf opposite the window where I pulled out a jutsu scroll to study while Kakashi slept. When I heard the front door open without an announcement, I was glad Kakashi was on a blanket, because I released the jutsu scroll, wrapped him tightly, and slipped out the door opposite, which opened up to Sakumo's weaponry. The back of my mind admired the impressive array of sharp objects and ninja gear on various shelves, and the collection of mission bags neatly lining the baseboards. Several were in a state of repacking on the table in the center of the room, but I could tell Sakumo was able to drop everything for an emergency mission if need be.

My neck prickled and I grabbed the nearest blade and slashed at where an adult's head would be, just as the scroll finished rolling shut. Sakumo flinched even as he caught my wrist easily, even though I put a lot of chakra into the blow, and I saw him draw a kunai in a reflexive counter, barely stopping himself before he stabbed me. I still winced as the point of the kunai drew a few drops of blood from my side.

"Good reflexes, kid, but you're rusty."

"You're a Jōnin," I retorted with a scowl. "And I just got out of the hospital."

"Fair enough, but I'm going to have to train you up to where you should be." Sakumo pocketed his kunai and took the training tantō from my slackened grip.

"Whatever," I grumbled, and returned the still-sleeping Kakashi to his father. He simultaneously replaced the tantō and took the child in his right hand. I looked over my shoulder at the weapons room. It was impressive. Sakumo's collection of training blades was arrayed on the nearest wall to my right. Hundreds of kunai were stacked on several shelves on the adjacent wall, and on the wall opposite me, there were eight duplicates of Sakumo's mission packs. On the wall behind the door, the rest of Sakumo's miscellaneous mission and training supplies were arrayed on shelves. I spotted the lead training rods Sakumo used to teach me the katas for using my twin sticks and build up my strength and speed for when I switched to the wooden ones. There was also a pile of bokkens and a box of senbon that I managed to identify before Sakumo pulled me out and closed the door with his foot.

"Now you know where I keep my gear. Are you okay?"

"I'm fine," I responded falling back onto one of the couches, watching him carefully. Sure enough, when he picked up the scroll to put it away, not caring if I had finished reading it or not, I noticed a slight tremor in his hand. I was probably overthinking it, but I had to ask. "Why are you shaking?"

"I'm not shaking," he sighed, exasperated.

"Did you get injured? Is that why the Hokage let you stay in the village?"

"No, what makes you say that?"

"I don't remember you ever holding Kakashi in your left, even though you would be able to defend him better if you could use your right hand to fight."

"I'm not injured."

"I suppose you wouldn't mind if I checked, it might be an old injury that never healed properly and you've been compensating without realizing it."

"No, I'm fine. You should probably go visit your family. I only brought you here so I could run some errands I couldn't bring Kakashi to."

"You're the one who claimed I'm rusty, what better way to practice is there?"

Sakumo laid a hand on my shoulder and looked me in the eye, dead serious. "I'm fine, Kichiro, I promise. You can check me over with your medic stuff when I pick you up for training in three days, but right now you probably should go spend time with your family, okay?"

I shrugged, figuring he must have been a little shaken up about something. I was one of the few medics who were willing to completely heal an injury so it didn't have to be put on the shinobi's medical records. I hadn't been approached by any shinobi outside of the hospital since the war started, mostly because I was out of the village. I suspected a number of ones who approached me before the war were ANBU, which was one of the reasons I never told anyone about it. ANBU was a secretive group, understandably, and I wasn't sure there were many medics in their ranks, so they would either have to trust the handful of Jōnin medics to heal off-books and place the information into their ANBU file only, or wait for the injury to heal by itself. I happened to be a quiet, and not exactly legal alternative. When I thought about it, I probably made a number of high-level connections without even realizing it.

Still, I couldn't shake the feeling Sakumo was lying to my face about something, something that wasn't classified.

* * *

 _Author's note: I love all of the feedback this is getting, it's beyond my wildest dreams!_


	36. Chapter 36

"Here, take the hat for on your way," Sakumo said, thrusting the traditional, conical hat into my hands as I left. "And don't bring it back, I hate it."

I was mostly used to the occasional odd request from Sakumo and tied the hat on my head without questioning it.

After saying my goodbyes to Sakumo, and Kakashi, who woke just as I was leaving, it didn't take me long to walk to the Uzumaki house. I figured it had been too long since I last saw them and would be rather impolite and potentially alarming for me to slip into the window, so I knocked on the door and listened to the muffled voices shouting something indecipherable.

Ise opened the door, and his face brightened the second he recognized me. "It's nice to see you alive and conscious," he murmured and wrapped me in a hug. Before I could open my mouth, he was brushing the dirt from the road off my clothes and taking off my hat.

"You don't have to hide the seal," he said as I reflexively reached up to cover it when he pulled off my hat. "All the kids know about it already, as well as the fact that you're a Jinchuuriki."

"How?" I asked warily, keeping my voice low.

"Fusō and Kushina got into an argument when you were declared MIA after the war with Iwa restarted. Some things were slipped and Kushina didn't realize she had left the door open until the damage was already done. Don't worry, the kids aren't allowed to talk about you unless they're in the house and there's only family here." He hugged me again and smoothed my hair. It was a little weird after going what felt like six months almost entirely alone, but I didn't mind the contact. "Why aren't you armed?" he asked.

"I'm only ever armed when I'm on a mission or training," I answered readily.

"Fair enough," he shrugged. "Are you up to meeting all the kids at once or should I send in a few at a time? Tsunade-sama said you might have problems adjusting."

"Can I see Minato and Kushina first?"

"Of course, kiddo, I'll wake them up and send them to you."

"No! You don't have to wake them. Let them sleep, they're probably exhausted. I'll go talk to them once I've seen everyone else."

Ise nodded and guided me out of the entryway. The rest of the house was a lot different than what I remembered. Instead of a mostly-open space with only a few rooms closed off and temporary dividers closing off individual rooms, the rest of the walls had been built. A long hallway stretched from the front of the house to the back, most of the doors ajar. I glanced inside as I passed the rooms, noting that most of them were bedrooms. Ise stopped at one of the closed doors and knocked.

"Nagato, are you in there?"

"No," a voice responded.

"Nagato—"

"I'll come out when it's time for dinner."

"You can't spend your whole day studying, son."

"I'm not studying, I'm reading."

"If Minato gave you another—"

"It's not from Minato, I promise."

"May I come in?"

"No."

"I have a surprise for you."

"I don't care."

"Nagato—"

"I'll come out for dinner."

Ise sighed in exasperation and lowered his voice so Nagato couldn't hear. "He's attempting the Genin test in two weeks, even though Fusō and I told him he couldn't. We had a fight about it last month and he hasn't cooled down yet. He wouldn't even come when I announced to the others you were back. He doesn't know about you."

"Does he even remember me?" I asked skeptically in the same low tone. "He was only four when I left."

"He remembers you, but I'm not sure how much. He wrote you down as a shinobi reference for his Genin application. That was the reason Fusō and I found out about it, because those on the MIA list can't be used as references and the application was returned through the mail. Kushina noticed it and gave it to us, so he's mad at her as well. I hate to ask you, but he still really looks up to you as his idol, and if anyone has a chance persuading him to wait to take the test, it's you."

"It's fine, do you want me to talk to him now or later?"

"How long before they call you back? Tsunade-sama mentioned they could send you out at any time after you're released."

"I have three days before I have a training session with Sakumo."

"Thank you, Kichiro." He wrapped me in another hug.

"That's what family's for, right?"

"Everyone'll be outside if you need anything." When he released me and walked away, I turned to the door and opened it quietly.

"Go away, I don't want to talk to you," Nagato grumbled, not even glancing at the door. He sat against the foot of his bed, the book propped up against his knees and tapping his chin with the tip of a kunai. It looked like he only had a few pages left.

I slid the door closed behind me and leaned against the wall, surveying the room. From where I stood, his bed was in the far-right corner of the room, situated so he could easily face the door as he slept. In the center of the room was a low table cluttered with beginner-level seals and Fūinjutsu supplies. In the near corner to my left was a dresser with two drawers hanging open to reveal his clothes. Atop the dresser was a small bookshelf, with several books arrayed neatly on it. A kunai pouch lay on the floor beside the head of his bed.

"Good riddance," he snapped to himself.

I waited for him to say something more, but he thought I had already left and went back to reading. I waited for him to finish the last few pages. From what I could gather by reading over his shoulder, he was reading the book on the shinobi rules and regulations. He stood up, walked across the room and replaced it on a small bookshelf. It wasn't until he turned around that he noticed me leaning against the wall. He froze, staring at me, the kunai lodging itself between two floorboards.

"If I was an intruder wishing to kill or capture you, you would have been at my mercy for almost ten minutes now, Nagato," I told him bluntly.

"You're MIA," he retorted after he got over enough of his shock.

"'MIA' is a nice way of saying a shinobi is either captured or an unconfirmed rogue. Your first reaction to seeing me here and in reasonable health should have been to attack with the kunai you dropped because I'd probably be a missing-nin or an enemy with a very good Henge."

Belatedly, Nagato crouched, snatched the kunai out of the floor and hurled it at my chest. I was glad my reflexes weren't too dull to catch the blade.

"Unless you have another, you should never throw your last weapon until you are absolutely sure it is a kill shot and are in the process of following your blade to retrieve it." With a quick step and a little bit of chakra to my legs and feet for speed and traction, I stepped between Nagato and the pouch of training kunai. He looked towards the table with several explosive seals on it, but I cut off that attempt as well.

He settled into one of my favorite basic Taijutsu forms. When I didn't move, he attacked. It was almost too easy for me to grab his wrist and pull him into my knee before slamming him face down on the floor. He tried to roll over, kicking at my ankles in the process, but a little bit of chakra and his foot just bounced off. I knelt beside him and ground his forehead into the ground.

"That was a decent try."

"Who are you?" Nagato growled.

"I'm hurt, it sounded like you recognized me earlier! I suppose I'm not really surprised. You were really little the last time I saw you and even before that I only spent a few weeks with you."

"I remember you!" He protested vehemently.

"You sure about that? You haven't said my name or asked me any questions to verify my identity. I suppose I could forgive your lapse, you just started at the Academy after all, right?"

"I've been in the Academy since I turned five!" Nagato retorted hotly.

"It doesn't look like it from my perspective. I expected a lot better from you."

"Stop being mean!"

"News flash, kid: all shinobi are mean, they hurt and kill people for a _living_."

"I'm not gonna be like that."

I snorted. "Do yourself a favor then and stay a civilian, because if you keep on this path, you're going to kill people, you're going to tear families apart, you're going to get hurt."

"To-san put you up to this, didn't he?" Nagato struggled against my grip.

"He asked me to persuade you not to take the Genin test, yes, but I don't care about the stupid test."

"Then why are you telling me to quit?"

"Lots of reasons. The biggest one is that I love your parents and I don't want anyone to hurt them, even if it's you coming home in a box."

He didn't respond, his face reddening in shame.

"The next reason is that I love my family, even though I haven't seen them in a long time, and I want them to stay safe."

"You didn't stop Minato and Kushina from being shinobi!" He retorted smugly.

"The two of them didn't suck at defending themselves. Did you know, before they graduated, they were able to take on a _Chuunin_ and _win_. You can't even be bothered to turn around when the door opens, I don't care how angry or upset you are at whoever is supposed to be standing there."

"There were two of them against one person!"

"They work as a team, Nagato. That means they would stick together and fight together on a mission. You don't have a teammate to help you, so that means I expect that much more out of you."

"My sensei says I'm really good for my age," he snapped defensively.

"Your sensei isn't the one with the final say."

Nagato looked as if he wanted to cry.

"If you follow through with taking this Genin test, I will make sure you fail. When you think you're ready, challenge me. If you can beat my Taijutsu, even if it takes every skill, jutsu, and trick you have, then I will let you take the test, hell, I'll make sure you pass it, get on a good team, and get the best sensei the village has to offer."

"You can't do this," he choked out

"Do you want to test that theory? You're staying alive whether you want to or not, Nagato." I released him and pulled him back to his feet, but he only sank back to the floor, crying. I knelt in front of him and brushed his hair out of his eyes. I wasn't sure how Madara had done it, but the Rinnegan was most certainly still dormant and his eyes were a dark brown.

"I'm sorry, Kichiro-san," he cried and lunged forward to hug me.

"What happened to 'nii-san'?" I teased and hugged him back.

"You're not mad at me?"

"I'm not mad."

"But I hurt you!"

"I'm okay, Nagato, getting mad wouldn't help anything. You know, you did hurt your parents, even if you didn't mean to. You should go apologize to them."

He nodded against my shoulder. "But not right now. Everyone will be so happy you're back and I don't want to share."

"I guess I'm fine with that. Do you like the Academy?" I asked, ruffling his hair.

"It's not really the Academy. One of the old retired shinobi is teaching me but it's still—You're the one who's been gone a long time! I should be asking you questions!"

I leaned back on my hands as Nagato parked himself on my lap. "I've still been gone and I don't know a lot about what's been going on here. I'm going to tell Minato and Kushina the entire story, and when I do you can listen as well. You still want to be a shinobi, right?"

He nodded.

"Okay, then I'll come and get you when I go and talk to our favorite duo. Deal?"

He nodded again.

"For now, how about you catch me up on everything I missed."

In simple words, Nagato summarized what I missed with the family. It was mostly everyday things, but I missed a number of larger events. Shortly after Nagato started training, the Inuzuka clan had a litter of puppies who couldn't access chakra. Normally, the puppies would have been put down instead of sentencing them to a life without a human counterpart, since the Inuzuka clan was the only clan in Konoha who was made up exclusively of ninja. Kushina found out about them and persuaded the Inuzuka clan head to gift the puppies to the Uzumaki clan. Nagato was of the opinion that the clan head only agreed because the litter had the same number of puppies as the Uzumaki clan had civilian children, which any shinobi knew would be at risk once they began to learn Fūinjutsu. Even though the puppies were unable to access chakra, they were still smart and strong enough to serve as guards, and any ninja, no matter what rank, would hesitate to attack a child guarded by a large dog with Inuzuka markings. Both the puppies and the children loved the arrangement, and the Uzumaki and Inuzuka clans had quickly become the closest clans in the village.

Nagato snickered as he recounted several events since that solidified the unlikely friendship. All four of the events Nagato knew of were explosive arguments between two members of the clan that somehow always ended with the two clans taking over the nearest restaurant and sharing a meal. It was completely illogical and unlikely, and no one else dared to get involved.

A group of four Uzumaki women appeared at the Konoha gates while Kushina was negotiating for the dogs. They claimed to be from Land of River and they were all civilians who got word of their clan being reestablished in Konoha and decided to try their luck somewhere they could openly share their name without fear of being exploited. After an extensive attempt to make sure they were who they claimed, the four were pointed at the clan and fit in nicely. One of the women was a doctor, while the other three were Fūinjutsu masters, who had posed as an artist, scribe and forger while in Land of River. One escaped the destruction of Uzu while on a trip to Suna as a tourist. The doctor's story was similar to Ise and Fusō's, and the other two had been on the mainland during the destruction and fled, spending the intermediate years trying to settle down in different minor countries, only to be forced to flee when their names were revealed. They made several attempts to enter Hi no Kuni, but their lack of papers prevented them from legally crossing the border. It wasn't until they met the other two women that they made it across with fake papers. Luckily, Fusō knew the three Fūinjutsu women on sight, and Ise was familiar with the doctor's name, even though she was several years behind him in Uzu's medical program.

At the arrival of the women, Ise and Fusō no longer had to work odd, infrequent hours to make sure someone was home to take care of the adopted orphans. The second floor of the house was entirely dedicated to Fūinjutsu. Now able to practice their preferred trade, the three women started a business of sorts from the sale of customizable explosive and storage seals to shinobi. They also sold security and barrier seals to shinobi and clan households. When Uzushiogakure was destroyed, the market for seals in Konoha had collapsed and prices for explosive seals had skyrocketed. Several groups had tried to fill the void, but the Fūinjutsu knowledge had been all but lost. The three masters slowly started to ease into the devastated market and lowered the prices, creating a promising future for it, depending on how many of the civilian children chose to join in the effort. The clan would never be in want of money. Several individuals already approached the clan to ask for apprenticeships, but the women hadn't been satisfied with any of the candidates and refused.

A few months after they arrived, a man, seriously injured and claiming to be an Uzumaki, had approached the Konoha border from Yu no Kuni. He was brought to Konoha and his identity was verified, even though none of the established Uzumaki recognized him. Before Uzu was destroyed, he was one of the village's merchants, and at the destruction, he lost the entirety of his livelihood, as well as his wife and infant son who remained in the village. After a few failed attempts to restart his business, he apprenticed to a samurai, who threw the man out when he got word that the Uzumaki clan was aligning themselves with Konoha and the man refused to give up his clan name. On the slim chance one of the surviving children was his son, he cut through a territory that was being fought over by two groups of criminals. He barely made it to the border before he collapsed, and had a variety of impressive scars after he recovered. Once he established himself as a member of the clan and somewhat recovered from the disappointment of his family still being dead, he was given the responsibility of 'everything else' which included fixing up and maintaining the house and property as well as acting as a salesman and advisor for the budding Fūinjutsu business. It didn't take long for the kids to start calling him 'Ji-chan'. Since his arrival made the clan large enough to earn representation in the council of clans and the rest of the clans wouldn't take no for an answer, he had drawn the short straw and become the clan's representative. He was good at his jobs, even if he made a show of hating the other uppity representatives and the incessant teasing from the other adults, of which he was the youngest, excluding Kushina and me, who were only considered adults because of our shinobi status.

As the highest-ranked shinobi, I was still recognized as the default clan head under Konoha law. Nagato noted that one of the only good things about me going MIA for so long was that as clan head I was technically the legal guardian of the orphaned children and Kushina. Of everyone in the clan, I was the only one with enough public standing to handle the bundle of attempts by other clans and families to incorporate Uzumaki blood into their lines. One of my first jobs back would be to accept, or preferably reject, the shinobi clans attempting to pull Kushina into their families and the civilian families attempting to either marry into the Uzumaki clan or pull members away from it. I was quite disgusted to hear that news, mostly because no one except Kushina was even ten years old, though the oldest of the civilians would be ten at the end of the month. The rest of the clan shared my sentiments.

Nagato started telling me about how Minato and Kushina had been promoted to Chuunin just after Kakashi was born when a loud angry knocking sounded from the front door. "It's one of the suitors trying to take one of the civilian kids," Nagato grumbled. "He came yesterday, but since it was during dinner we ignored them until they went away. To-san didn't want to risk a fight since Kushina and Minato weren't here and Ji-chan was at a meeting."

"I guess I have to handle it," I sighed, standing up. "Do you have something I can wrap around my hands and forehead?"

Nagato nodded and jumped up to pull out a roll of bandages from his dresser. I wrapped my forehead and the palms of my hands as I slid open the door and walked to the front of the house. When I glanced behind me, Nagato was following closely and Ise was quietly ushering everyone through the back door. As soon as they disappeared into one of the rooms, I opened the front door.

"Good afternoon, stranger-san. Is there an emergency that requires you to attempt to break down the door?" I greeted politely.

"Who are you?" The man demanded and took a step forward to enter the house, but I made no motion to move out of his way and allow him through. After a long moment of staring each other down, he returned to his position. He was dressed in traditional clothes and had a little boy and girl, twins, primped up to look thrice their age hovered behind him, terrified.

"Generally, the visiting stranger introduces themselves first," I responded coolly. Three men, apparently there to look intimidating, took a step up onto the porch, making the space seem more than a little crowded. Frankly, civilians, no matter how big and strong they looked, didn't scare me the slightest.

"Oshiro Riku, head of the Oshiro clan. My clan controls seventy percent of the spice trade in the land of Fire," he responded pompously.

"It's a pleasure to meet you, Oshiro-san. I am Uzumaki Kichiro, and this is my little brother Nagato." I put an arm around Nagato's shoulders and pulled him partially into view, forcing him to hide the kunai in his hand, but not fast enough for the civilian not to notice. Suddenly, he was a bit less confident, though it was almost imperceptible. "Is there a reason for your visit?" I prompted when he tried to stare me down again. I knew he expected me to invite him inside and play host, but I knew better.

"May I speak with your clan head?"

"That is me."

"Forgive me if I don't believe you, young man."

"I assure you, I am telling the truth. I am a Chuunin shinobi of Konohagakure, as well as an Iryo-nin and Jinchuuriki. That makes me the senior shinobi of this clan and with the main family deceased, I am, by default, the head. I'm also in the Bingo books if you would like to verify my claims, though that entry might be slightly outdated."

The man in front of me lost a lot of confidence at my closing statement. "Uzumaki Kichiro was declared dead over a year ago," he drew himself up pompously.

" _I_ was declared MIA, not KIA, but I can understand the confusion. With all due respect, I am fairly certain your visit isn't about the identity of my clan's leadership."

"You are correct. I came to discuss the engagement of one or both of my children to members of your clan." He bowed respectfully.

After a brief moment of hesitation, I mimicked him and stepped aside so he could enter. Nagato took his cue and led them to the appropriate room once they had taken off their shoes and dusted the dirt from the road off their clothes. I made note of the fact that the roads were abnormally dry for the time of year.

I closed the door behind everyone and followed them to a room with a table in the center and cushions arranged around it. I sat down opposite the Oshiro clan head. A man who appeared to be a lawyer sat down at the clan head's right and placed four scrolls on the table between us. The guards knelt in a line against the wall behind the clan head and the children stood on either side, directly behind him.

"I'll get some tea," Nagato said and hurried out.

"It has come to my attention that you have several children in your clan at the perfect age for betrothal. As a new clan with such a young head, I can understand the difficulties in establishing yourself a political base of power."

The door opened to reveal an unfamiliar redheaded man. He bowed politely to the room, closed the door behind him, and knelt beside me on my right while I carefully kept my eyes on the Oshiro head. I only looked away when he slid a piece of paper in front of me that briefly explained who he was and why he was here in a rushed script. The ink hadn't even had a chance to dry. It was nice to know his name was Takeshi since Nagato only referred to him as 'Ji-chan'. I folded the page before the Oshiro's lawyer could read it upside down and retuned my attention to the guests.

"As I was saying, I can understand the difficulties in establishing yourself a political base of power, especially as an active shinobi. I wish to help you in that."

"Before you continue, I would like to ask why it appears that I need help in these matters."

He smiled widely. "You see, your clan only recently entered Konoha politics, and are only just beginning to participate in the trade here. There are many pitfalls in the markets and anyone can benefit from someone with experience. An alliance with my clan could only prove beneficial for you."

"As I'm sure you are aware, my clan is quite small and the goods and services we have to offer this village reside firmly on the shinobi side of this economy, even though the clan is mostly civilian. Why do you suppose we need the help of another civilian clan who almost exclusively caters to civilians?"

"To broaden your spheres of influence and provide your children with potential niches in the workforce."

I glanced at Takeshi for guidance and he motioned under the table for me to accept the explanation. "Hypothetically, would this betrothal be an alliance between the clans or the absorption of one clan into the other?"

The door opened and Nagato came in with a tray of tea and placed it between us and served it with ease. In the distraction, the Oshiro's lawyer took one of the scrolls off the table. I almost missed the deft movement and tensed at the fact a civilian nearly pulled a fast one on me. Takeshi scribbled down a note in pencil that assured me neither the Oshiro or his men would not be able to cross the table without triggering the room's security. I read it and flipped the page over.

"The betrothal would be an alliance," he assured me once Nagato knelt with his back to the wall.

"So tell me, what can your clan offer that any other clan in this village, particularly one I am more familiar with, cannot?"

He immediately launched into a well-practiced spiel extolling the virtues of his clan. I listened with amusement and enjoyed my tea. I signed at Nagato to tap on the floor twice if he could understand the standard Konoha signs. When I heard the confirmation, I proceeded to mock the man through signs to amuse myself and assure Nagato I had no intention of following through with any agreements.

Partway through, the stomach of one of the children, the girl's, growled obnoxiously.

"Nagato, would you be so kind as to take Oshiro-san's children into the kitchen and find them something to eat?" I figured it wouldn't be very polite of me to embarrass the father in front of his children.

As soon as they left, Oshiro hurried and finished the speech, finally noticing that I was less than impressed by him. Before I could state my opinion on the matter, he launched into an extremely dehumanizing description of the two children, as if he was attempting to sell them to me like an animal. I might have been slightly overreacting, considering his behavior would have been considered perfectly normal to most anyone else, but I was certainly not going to deal with it any longer, damn the consequences.

"No," I interrupted him firmly. He glared at me in shock, as if I had just thrown my tea in his face, a motion I was honestly considering. "I am not interested in trading children for money, prestige, or political power. If you are interested in allying our respective clans through marriage, your proposal will be considered when the parties affected by the agreement are of age and have initiated the conversation." I always wanted to throw someone out of a house and I dearly hoped he was going to provoke me to the point where I would be justified in doing so.

He smirked at me, which was not the response I was expecting. "Let me rephrase, _little boy_. You are in no position to deny this settlement."

With a somewhat evil smile, the lawyer spread out the scroll he had taken off the table earlier in front of me and pointed at a blank space on the scroll for my signature. The clan head unrolled a quill and ink jar above it.

"I'm afraid I don't see a reason why I'm compelled to sign this." I raised an eyebrow at them.

"Kichiro—" Takeshi began grimly.

I held up a hand to stop him. "Oshiro-san, as I am sure you are aware, I am a shinobi. I have fought in this war and I have killed both in defense of myself and in defense of this village. I gave myself up to become Iwa's prisoner, I gave myself up to be tortured for several reasons, the foremost of which is the children of this village, the future of this village. Now, tell me why I should voluntarily betray the happiness of those I've sacrificed for. If it's money, forget it. The children of this clan will grow up reasonably well-off, that I am certain of. If you think prestige can tempt me, you're forgetting the fact that the Uzumaki clan has their insignia on the back of nearly every shinobi in this village, even though they are an almost-entirely civilian clan, and always have been. For that same reason, we have a disproportional effect in the political sphere as well. From my perspective, I have absolutely no incentive to agree to anything, especially after you attempted to rudely knock down the front door and proceeded to insult me by insinuating I was a liar, incompetent, and dead."

He just glared as I rolled the scroll closed and tossed it at him. It bounced off his chest and landed in his hand.

I stood up slowly and the rest of the room quickly stood in return as I leaked the tiniest amount of killing intent. "Not even the Hokage could make me give up one of my family members, and I assure you, he's tried. Now leave. Please." I finished. They left in a hurry.

A minute after the front door slammed, Ise appeared in the door.

"I'm going to make sure his children get home," Takeshi said and slipped past him.

"Minato and Kushina are taking them back," Ise said over his shoulder. "Everyone is at the dinner table."

"No one's going to complain if I just accidentally started a feud with the Oshiro clan, right?"

Ise laughed. "No, kiddo, we're not going to complain. No one else knows you're here yet, so why don't you stay here until I come and get you so you can make a big entrance."

I rolled my eyes. "If you say so."

Ise closed the door behind him with a vindictive grin.

* * *

 _Author's note: Greetings from Chicago!_


	37. Chapter 37

The entire Uzumaki clan plus Minato had just started a rather subdued dinner when I walked into the dining room. Fusō was the first to notice me, the first to squeal my name, as well as the first to assault me with a hug, even though she was very obviously pregnant and waddled more than she could walk. A heartbeat later, several more bodies slammed into me, knocking me back against the door frame.

Underneath Fusō's elbow, I could see Nagato rolling on the floor, laughing, and substituted myself with him, so he could feel the full force of 'attack of the Uzumaki delight'. The best part was that only Fusō had the perspective to notice the change in hairstyle and height, and laughed at the trick as I picked myself up off the floor. Only one of the Uzumaki kids, the oldest civilian, did not join the vertical dogpile and I took my cushion off the shelf and parked it between him and Ise.

"Hey! Everyone! I'm absolutely starving here, so put poor Nagato, who was laughing at me and totally deserved what he got for being an ass in the first place, down and let's eat!"

They broke apart with a laugh and retook their places around the table. Minato and Kushina had identical glares on their faces and I had a feeling I was going to get kidnapped as soon as I was finished eating, which was fine with me, because I would probably fall asleep as soon as the chattering eased.

There were introductions between me and the adults, some polite conversation, but mostly everyone just talked at me or about me. As the last morsels of food were eaten, the puppies Nagato told me about rolled in for their meals. I grinned as they focused on me, took a few wary sniffs, gave the doggy equivalent of a shrug, and bounded for their respective owners.

Minato and Kushina took the opportunity to grab me under the arms, Nagato tackled my legs, and I was painfully dragged to the top floor of the house via the spiral staircase Takeshi rebuilt, after a jaunty wave to the adults. When we reached the top, Minato pried Nagato off my legs and Kushina threw me onto one of the mattresses that had a trap seal stitched into it so I couldn't leave it.

"Okay, I get the picture, you two are really unhappy with me right now, I get it, but before you murder me in some creative and painful way, can we talk about it? I'll tell you anything you want to know, damn the classified labels."

They just glared at me without a reaction, and I rightly assumed they couldn't hear me. I laid back and got comfortable. I wasn't headed anywhere anytime soon anyways.

Eventually, the seal fell after a three-way argument between Minato, Kushina, and Nagato that I couldn't hear. Nagato sat down beside me as I sat up and leaned against the wall while Minato and Kushina sat down in front of me before they reactivated the seal.

"You'll tell us everything, right? Nothing classified, no lies, no stretching the truth, just the bare facts and you'll answer any questions honestly and completely," Minato demanded.

"I'll tell you anything you want to know with complete honestly from after I collapsed sealing the Seven Swordsmen up until this second." That seemed to satisfy them for the moment. Nagato tucked his head under my chin and wrapped his arms around my torso.

And so I told them everything that I remembered, the complete and honest truth, albeit a bit boring for most of the time. It was harder than I thought, and I had to stop myself several times before I glazed over parts of the story I would normally have filtered for retelling.

I didn't have to tell them anything. I could have said I didn't remember anything, but I knew it wouldn't satisfy them. At least, even though I knew there were gaps in my memory, I couldn't place them and what I did remember was reassuringly mundane compared to what they probably imagined.

The worst part of it all was how much time had passed without me realizing it. It still felt like five months, even though over a year had passed. It would take me weeks to adjust to not only being older, but also the changes in the village I had already seen.

I did not tell the about the conversation I overheard between the Hokage and Kagami. I told them how terrified I was to hold Kakashi, who was so small, and how scared I was that I would drop him. That distracted everyone for a while, apparently, Kakashi was a frequent presence in the house and according to the adults, he was small for his age.

I clung as tightly to Nagato as he held on to me through the entire thing, but I didn't leave a tear stains on his clothes. When I finished, none of them could look me in the eye.

"How can you not hate them?" Minato demanded.

"Hate whom?"

"Iwa."

"Can you honestly say you would have done differently in the same circumstances?"

"I wouldn't have broken the treaty in the first place," Minato grumbled.

Kushina interrupted before I could answer. "I know how you like to flip the situation, to understand it from someone else's perspective, but it won't work this time, Nii-san. Iwa is firmly in the wrong no matter which direction you look at it." Damn, she grew up fast.

"You should at least be angry with them," Minato concluded.

I sighed and rested my head on Nagato's, who started nodding off towards the end of my recollection.

"I don't want to argue with you. I don't trust Iwa but I don't hold any ill will towards them. Now, everyone here is exhausted. Don't argue with me, I can see the bags under your eyes, and I'm sure mine are worse. You three can stay here and talk about what you want to ask me in the morning. I'll go sleep in Nagato's room." I stated to stand up, but Nagato refused to let go.

"You're not going anywhere; you're not disappearing again." Nagato mumbled.

"I didn't—oh, I guess you're right, I did disappear on you, Nagato. I'm sorry about that, but it won't happen again if I have anything to say about it. I don't even resume training for another two days, I promise."

"If you had anything to say about it, you wouldn't have left in the first place."

I didn't have a response to that, so I just picked Nagato up with me. "I _will_ see you in the morning," I said to Minato and Kushina. Minato looked as if he wanted to say something, but a look from Kushina silenced him.

I carried Nagato down the stairs and into his room without interruption. I laid Nagato on his bed and sat down beside him, leaning back against the bedpost. After a few moments, Ise paused on the threshold, several blankets tucked under his arm.

"I don't want to talk about anything right now," I told him flatly as Nagato's hand tightened in mine.

"I didn't expect you to. I only came to close the door and tell you that if you need to leave the house during the night you have to go through the smallest window on the northwest wall of the third floor. I'll activate the security seals in a few minutes, and if you leave, you won't be able to get back in until sunrise when I take down the seals. I'll key you directly into the seal system tomorrow so you can enter any leave whenever you want."

"Thank you, but I'm sure it will help the peace of mind of several individuals if my movements are restricted until I return to active duty." Nagato's hand tightened in mine.

"Do you have any idea when that will be?"

"I don't know the wartime procedures for someone in my position. You'd be better off asking Minato or Kushina."

Ise placed the extra blankets on the foot of the bed. "There's an empty room with a bed two doors down on your right if you want it, as well an extra mattress on the second floor in the far corner of the room. Sleep where you like, everyone else has already gone to bed and no one will bother you." He started to close the door but stopped. "And I'm here if you need anything, at any time, no matter how trivial, don't hesitate to ask. I'm in the first room on your right from the front door."

I nodded and he shut the door. A few minutes later, I could feel the massive security seal activate.

"Can you stay here for tonight?" Nagato asked softly.

It took me a long time to decide on my answer, but eventually I laid down beside him and he slid towards the wall to give me more space.

(-_-)

I slept fitfully that night and Nagato shook me awake several times, but I never fully awoke.

When morning came and I woke up, the first thing I did was panic at the unfamiliar room and took one of Nagato's training kunai before he could react to my sudden alertness. Without thinking, I stabbed my forearm with the blunt tip, the blade going between the bones of my arm and puncturing my thigh. Nagato let out an alarmed shout as I pulled the blade out of my arm, and almost immediately, I could hear several people running for the room. They opened the door just as Nagato managed to wrench the kunai out of my grasp. I probably looked possessed as I stared down, unsure how to feel.

Ise stepped forward cautiously and sat down beside me. He automatically pulled the bandage off my head, ripped it in half, and folded it to make a pad to put pressure on the bleeding. Someone reached for my forehead and I automatically flinched away from the unfamiliar hand.

"Kaede-chan, just give him some space, he'll be fine," Fusō murmured.

"Does he look anywhere near 'fine' to you? That boy should be in the hospital! He would _never_ have been released under my watch, no matter how badly the village needs him."

"Kaede, now is not the time," Fusō said firmly.

The other person in the doorway left quickly, pulling a stunned Nagato along with them.

"He's suicidal!" Kaede screeched back.

"He's eleven and impulsive, not suicidal."

"Are you blind? The boy has a hole in his arm from a _training weapon_. How else would you explain it?"

"I'm not suicidal," I interrupted coldly. "I only damaged the muscle, and that is easy to fix. I just panicked for a moment, but I'm fine now."

"You obviously have some kind of disconnect with reality then and you should still be in the hospital sorting out your head, or with someone who can control you in case you lose touch."

"Damnit! I'm not crazy!" I shot to my feet. Ise stood with me and grabbed my arm to keep me from lunging at her, not that it would have actually stopped me.

"You're not in your right mind!"

"I damn straight know I'm not, but that doesn't mean I need to be thrown in the psych ward!" I didn't mean that to come out as harsh and defensive as it sounded. My head pounded and I felt an intense need to get out of the small room. "Excuse—"

"Kichiro, wait," I paused as Ise turned me around to focus on him. "Heal it," he ordered.

Obediently, I laid my hand over my arm and closed up the skin before laying my hand over my thigh to heal the puncture wound.

"Is your chakra control normal?" Ise asked, tapping my jaw to keep my eyes focused on him before I could turn away and push my way out. Fusō was trying to persuade Kaede to leave, but she was having none of it.

I frowned. "Yes, but it feels a little different now that you brought it up."

"You just have more than you remember and it's a little less flexible." Ise put a hand on the top of my head and pressed his thumb against the center of my forehead. "Focus on your chakra, just yours." Slowly, I sat back down on the bed, doing as I was told. He took one of my hands and pressed it over my heart. "Feel your heartbeat and match your chakra to the rhythm."

After a minute of concentration, my chakra started to pulse through my body alongside my blood and it was almost hypnotizing, but it didn't take very long for me to regain equilibrium and return to normal. When I reopened my eyes, Ise took a seat beside me and I leaned against him. Kaede and Fusō had left.

"What's wrong with me?" I groaned, rubbing my temples.

"Kichiro, calm down," Ise tried to soothe.

"I'm not worked up, I just know something is wrong, but it's not me but at the same time, it is me.

He slid me into his lap and wrapped a blanket tightly around me. "You're safe here," he assured me.

"Safe from myself?" I asked sardonically, but that quickly turned into panic. "I don't have the self-discipline needed to break my own skin! It took me over a year to get the discipline to break or dislocate bones in my hand, and that was only after endless exercising at escaping ropes and wires, but I was never able to—" My breathing quickened to the point that I could no longer force the words out.

"Focus on me, Kichiro," Ise murmured and pressed my ear over his heart. The steady rhythm helped me focus, but not on him. Suddenly, Ise grabbed my jaw and forced me to look at him, holding the blanket closed tightly around my torso so I couldn't move my arms. "Focus on me, Kichiro," he repeated. I squirmed, but unless I used chakra, he was stronger. "Hatake trained you to defend yourself first and ask questions second, right?"

"That has nothing—"

"It has everything to do with this. Hatake would never have let you out in the field if the conditioning hadn't worked. No one would have let you out of the village otherwise."

"What are you talking about?" I jerked backwards, hard enough to wrench the blanket free of Ise's grip, and landed flat on my back.

"You were trained to eliminate threats, whatever they may be."

"So what?"

Ise pinched the bridge of his nose as if I was missing an obvious point. "You didn't even notice, did you?"

"What are you talking about?" I almost shouted at him.

"Whether you were aware of it or not, you were trained to react to and eliminate a threat before it could harm you. Tell me, what is the primary method Hatake taught you to dispel a Genjutsu?"

I frowned. "Since I'm a medic nin, the primary method is breaking or dislocating a finger since I can heal it almost right away."

"As much as you hate to admit it, Kichiro, you are conditioned to attack back. If someone took a knife to you in the middle of the street, they would have the knife in them instead. You want to think you back off and avoid confrontations, but you attack back because that is what you were trained to do."

"That's not right," I hissed. "What could you possibly know?"

"I watched your father and several others go through the exact same thing you are," Ise murmured back, his voice grave.

I didn't respond, I just lay on the floor and rubbed my face.

"He spent eight weeks in one of Kiri's torture chambers. They tried everything on him. They—" He broke off and I could tell he was still grieving. I picked myself up off the floor and sat down beside him. It was probably cruel of me to show up in front of them in Ame. I knew he had gotten his hopes up that both of Kichiro's parents were still alive, even though I had been quick to say otherwise. "Your dad was as strong as he was smart. He held out for far longer than he should have been able to, or maybe they sent someone incompetent, but when he supposedly broke, he fed them false information. When they figured it out, someone else took over, and the rest of the time your father spent under countless Genjutsus until he no longer knew what direction was up. The worst part, perhaps, was that no one was coming for him. Uzushiogakure didn't dare anger Kiri by attempting a rescue, so he had to escape on his own. He managed it and showed up at the village gates nearly dead. He all but retired from being a ninja after he recovered, he became a full-time village guard, only running the occasional C-rank to escort merchants between Uzu and Konoha. Did you know he was a Jōnin? He earned it at sixteen and went nearly ten years before he got caught and stopped taking A-ranked missions. It wasn't until after you were born a year and a half after he escaped that he could return to duty without putting a kunai through anyone who stepped behind him."

Ise painstakingly cleaned my blood out from around his fingernails with the clean part of the bandage, waiting for me to respond. When I said nothing, he continued.

"That's how I know, Kichiro. Your father accidentally injured several people before he figured out which triggers set him off, and I was there the entire time." He pressed a hand over his chest, where I vaguely remembered he had a scar. "That's how I know. You can't help your training and it will take time for you to get better."

"I'm not sick, not this time."

"Kushina told me a lot about what you've done for her and Minato. It's time for us to help you."

"I shouldn't need—"

"After being captured, there are very few ninjas who return to active duty."

"You know I don't have a choice," I responded. "I walk out of this house as a medic and shinobi or a dead man, and I can't let them seal the Kyuubi into Kushina."

Ise didn't refute it as he put his arm around my shoulders.

"If it's not sealed in her, it will be sealed in Nagato."

He reflected on that until my stomach grumbled impatiently. "Let's get you something to eat."

(-_-)

Breakfast was quiet. Nagato, Minato, and Kushina had been temporarily suspended from their respective responsibilities for a calculated prank they pulled on the Academy the day before. I suspected the three of them had turned into little heathens while I was gone, so long as neither Ise nor Fusō were looking. The rest of the children had left for school while all the adults were working elsewhere. In the house, it was just the four of us.

"Ka-chan said that you should be retiring," Nagato broke the silence.

"He can't," Kushina responded before I could.

"I read the shinobi contract. There's a clause that says a shinobi can retire after any major hospitalization with no consequences."

"Nii-san's contract is a bit different."

I nodded in agreement before sticking the last of my rice in my mouth. I would have done almost anything for a good waffle slathered in maple syrup. Or scrambled eggs and bacon. Hell, any American food would have been fine, I just wanted something familiar.

"Are there any eggs?" I asked, seemingly out of nowhere.

I got odd looks from all three of them.

"You've eaten at least two kilograms of food already," Minato deadpanned. "How are you not full?"

I shrugged. Frankly, I was stuffed, but by the time I finished cooking an omelet, I would have enough room. When I wasn't on a mission, I still ate in American proportions, even if it was almost pig-like in comparison to the rest of the culture. Besides, I needed the calories. I sure as hell didn't want to stunt my growth in this world.

"There might be one or two eggs in the kitchen," Minato said. I was on my feet immediately in search of them.

They followed to clean up the dishes as I rustled around the kitchen looking for what I would need for a decent omelet. There was no cheese or peppers so I made due with some spinach and onions. I was very proud of myself when I finished the omelet.

"Nii-san?" Kushina asked as I tipped the clumsy omelet onto a plate. "What is that?"

"An _omelet_ ," I responded cheerfully.

"Is it from Iwa?"

"No, but I'm going to say it's from _America_ because I'm arrogant like that."

I climbed up on top of the cupboard to retrieve the fork I had hidden when the kitchen had been finished. I carved it not long after I had arrived in Konoha when I had gotten sick of using chopsticks for every single meal. It was dusty, but I rinsed it in the sink and dug into my omelet while leaning against the kitchen sink, trying to ignore the incredulous looks the other three were giving me.

"Is there a problem?" I asked them when I finished half the omelet.

"You're weird," Nagato summed up their thoughts.

"Would you like to try it?" I asked, cutting off a piece and offering it to him.

Tentatively, Nagato reached out and took the square inch of egg, spinach, and onion with his fingers. He eyed me with suspicion, but ate it anyways. "It's not bad," he conceded, making a silent plea of more.

I cut off two more pieces to offer to Minato and Kushina. It made what remained of the omelet depressingly small, but I was full this time. For some reason, Minato tossed a kunai across the room and when I looked back at my plate, it was empty and Nagato had a very full mouth and my fork in his hand.

I carefully set the plate in the sink while Nagato quickly swallowed the food. "It was a good dessert?" Nagato said bashfully when my gaze returned to him.

"You, my youngest little brother, are not going to enjoy your training session today, mostly because you got caught." I poked Nagato in the chest. "The two of you, my oldest little siblings, are going to have it much worse because you stole my _omelet_." I patted Minato and Kushina's heads. All three of them paled and I let them sweat it for a little longer before bursting out laughing.

They laughed nervously.

"Come on, I'm not going to waste my day training the three of you. What do you say to a walk instead?"

I picked Nagato up and set him on my shoulders before throwing my arms around the shoulders of the other two and escorting them towards the door.

"Wait!" Kushina cried and vanished up the stairs. After a few seconds, she returned with a ball I made during our first week in Konoha to entertain her when she got tired of wandering around the village with no money. We had played hacky sack games for hours inside or out in clearings beside different trails. I was surprised she kept the thing. It was just a makeshift cloth sack I had sewn from my torn shirt with a needle and thread Kushina begged off some lady. It was stuffed with the rest of the shirt and made a decent hacky sack. "Why don't we go out back and you can show Minato and Nagato all the fun games you made up!"

I shrugged and agreed, turning around to exit the house through the back door. We played hacky sack for the remainder of the morning. Minato volunteered to go get lunch and bring it back. I made makeshift lacrosse sticks, and after lunch, I introduced the game to them. Their first attempts were hilarious, but Minato and Kushina were shinobi and Nagato was a genius, so it didn't take long to get a good game going after lunch. It didn't take long for us to realize that Nagato could somewhat defend against Minato and Kushina at full speed, even if he had a hard time tracking me when I poured on the speed. The game picked up a lot after that. I was thrilled to find out I was still faster than Kushina and Minato, as long as they didn't use any jutsu. I had to add a 'no chakra' rule after a frustrated Minato shunshined past Nagato and I to put the ball in our goal, which was a circle in the ground. We gained an audience when the rest of the kids returned home. Dinner was outside that night.

The game ended at sunset, with Minato and Kushina one point ahead of Nagato and I. Nagato insisted it was a tie, since that point had been from Minato's shunshin. I just told him to deal with it and be proud that he kept up with two Chuunin in speed, if not in skill. Of the twelve points we had, Nagato had only scored one.

The four of us spent the remainder of the evening on the third floor. At some point, a target was set up and we took turns riddling the target with senbon, kunai, and shuriken while the three of them pelted me with the questions they had refrained from the night before. I slept on my own mattress when they exhausted their questions. It did nothing for the difficulty I had sleeping and I nearly dislocated Minato's arm when he shook me awake in the morning. I talked with Ise for almost an hour that morning while the other three were sent around the village on errands. When he left for his shift at the hospital, Minato cornered me.

"We were banned from civilian contact, Nii-san. Why are you allowed to stay here with kids running all over the place?"

I sighed. "I don't have any history of violent outbursts, Minato, and I'm not swinging at everything that startles me. Both you and Kushina were, and some of your attacks on me would have killed a civilian unable to counter them. It's just a difference in personality."

"They almost did kill you," Minato looked down guiltily.

"Those were extenuating circumstances," I insisted.

He wasn't convinced, so I ruffled his hair reassuringly before giving him a hug.

"I don't hold it against you, Minato, I'm perfectly fine now."

He clearly didn't believe me anymore, but I couldn't do anything about that. Kushina appeared in front of me. I put two fingers against her forehead.

"Wait your turn, I'm reassuring Minato right now." I pushed her away as she scowled, but she wandered off anyways.

"You're not perfectly fine, Nii-san," Minato responded quietly. I pulled back and held him at arm's length, both hands on his shoulders.

"No, I'm not, but that has absolutely nothing to do with you, is that clear? Yes, my choices got you in your mess, but your choices have absolutely nothing to do with my mess."

"I should have—"

"Should have what? Offered to go instead? Stopped me? Gone with me? The entire situation was beyond your control, and any situation like it will be beyond your control for a long time yet."

"You're not that much older than me."

"The situation was beyond my control as well, hell, the Hokage himself could do barely anything about it."

"Then I'm going to become Hokage and make sure nothing bad ever happens to you or anyone else ever again."

"Minato, you can't control all of the bad in this world. You can become the most powerful, the fastest, the scariest, but bad things are still going to happen to everyone. You can't fix the world no matter how hard you try."

Minato glared at me.

"You can't fix it and I'm not idealistic enough to let you think you can. The only thing I can be sure of is that you can make this world better. How much better depends on you, how long you live, and how strong you can get."

He still didn't like it, but I didn't care.

"I'm going to go see what Kushina wants and then I have someone's office door to break down. Do you need anything else before I leave you to think on what I said?"

He shook his head so I left him to think on what I said.

"What did you need?" I asked when I nearly ran into Kushina as I walked out of the dining room Minato cornered me in.

"It's nothing," she murmured.

"Alright," I responded cheerfully. "I'll be back in a few hours."

"Where are you going?"

"To break down the Hokage's door."

"He really doesn't like it when people do that."

"Good, I'm trying to be obnoxious."

"Nii-san, why do you try and antagonize the Hokage? He's not that bad."

I smirked at her. "You're right, he's not that bad. I won't break the door, promise."

"Your uniform is upstairs."

* * *

 _Author's note: Greetings from Dallas!_


	38. Chapter 38

After changing into my uniform, minus my haori and weapons, I took the route across the rooftops and landed in front of the Hokage tower. No one stopped me as I strode inside and headed directly up to his office. I knew the answer I was going to give about ROOT was flimsy, but I wanted to be sure to face the Hokage's interrogation on my terms instead of being caught unaware. I was about to open the door, but thought better of it and knocked instead. There was no need to be overly rude.

"Come in," the Hokage called.

I opened the door. He glanced up at me and did a double-take as if he was expecting someone else.

"Kichiro-kun, I wasn't expecting to see you this soon."

I closed the door and took a seat in front of him, my arms crossed while he continued to write in a scroll.

"What can I do for you?"

"I heard a significant part of your conversation with Kagami outside of my hospital room."

He stiffened and slowly put down the pen and set aside the scroll. "You should have still been unconscious."

"I honestly wish I was, but that can't be changed now. I believe you have questions for me."

He studied me for a long time. "You are in no condition for me to interrogate now," he concluded.

"The minute I'm healthy enough to be interrogated you're most likely going to send me off to fight Iwa as a medic instead. I can't do my job if you suspect me of treason. I'm here, ready to voluntarily answer your questions truthfully, and I am fully aware of where I am and what I am doing. This is the deal, take it or leave it."

He continued to study me. I leaned back in my seat and stared at the ceiling above his head. Finally, he spoke. "How much of the conversation did you hear?"

"Enough to know that you believe Uchiha Madara-level Genjutsu to be at play in this war, you are scared by the supposedly unintelligible memories and thoughts I have floating around my mind, and are extremely suspicious that I know sensitive information about this village and potentially shared it with Iwa, because, honestly, who expects a kid to hold up for more than a few seconds under torture."

"Is that all you heard?" He asked, cautious.

"Yes."

He sighed. "Would you like some tea before we begin?"

"No thank you."

He made a gesture with his hand and two ANBU appeared beside me, kneeling. "No one except Uchiha Kagami is to enter my office until Kichiro-kun leaves. Dismissed."

The ANBU vanished.

The Sandaime stood and disappeared briefly into an adjacent room before returning with a teapot, two teacups, and tea leaves in a separate cup. "You're not one to be impressed by formalities, so I'm not even going to try." He poured the tea and handed me some.

I took it but didn't drink any, slowly swirling it in the cup.

"If you were anyone else, I would have returned you to the hospital for showing up here before you recovered."

It wasn't a question so I didn't respond. He turned my chair so that he could face me directly from the second chair in front of his desk and sat down.

"A lot of things about you and Kushina-chan don't quite add up."

"Leave Kushina out of this. She has no responsibility for anything you could possibly want to know."

"Then tell me how two children managed to nearly master Fūinjutsu between them and teach it to another child with no one having any inclination of what was going on?"

I bit my lip thinking of the best way to phrase my answer.

"Am I correct in concluding you stole much more than clan records before the massacre?"

"Yes."

"How much information did you manage to take?"

"I'm pretty sure it was the entire library."

He managed a rather spectacular spit-take. "Just to be clear, you managed to save almost the entirety of the Uzumaki records and Fūinjutsu, and told no one."

"I'm pretty sure Minato knows, and Kushina might have told the rest of the clan, but otherwise, that is correct."

"And no one caught on to your scheme?"

"Not that I'm aware."

"That's quite the accomplishment to pull off in a shinobi village. I should court-martial both of you for it."

I sat up straight, glaring at him. "As I said, the entire thing was my idea. Leave Kushina out of it."

"I don't believe you would condone a stunt of that magnitude in the first place, though hiding the fact that you had the information I'm certain was entirely your idea."

"The theft of the information had absolutely nothing to do with you or Konoha, and the deception began before Kushina and I arrived here. None of it can be blamed on her since her contract had no requirement to release information from before her arrival."

"Calm down, I'm not going to punish either of you. You've more than made up for withholding the information, though I recommend you share it with your clan. A living Uzumaki clan with secret techniques they can use is much more valuable to Konoha than a bunch of paper with potentially indecipherable scribbles."

I relaxed back against the back of the chair.

"Next question: how did you know Mito-sama and I were planning on placing the Kyuubi into either you or Kushina?"

"I knew it was an eventual possibility, but that was all."

"How did you know about the Kyuubi in the first place."

"The fight between the Shodai and Uchiha Madara is nearly common knowledge."

"How did you know about the Uzumaki affinity for containing tailed beasts?"

"There was a significant section of the Uzumaki records focused on sealing tailed beasts, much of it was dated before the Shodai distributed the tailed beasts to the other shinobi nations. One of the required attributes for Jinchuuriki is lots of dense chakra. There were also several notes that mentioned Uzumaki Mito had a significantly easier time controlling the Kyuubi in comparison to the Jinchuuriki of lesser tailed beasts, even those around the same age and caliber as her. It wasn't a difficult conclusion to arrive at."

"Was Kushina's potential as a kunoichi the primary reason you pursued the Kumo kidnappers?"

"The primary reason I pursued them was because she is my sister, but yes, I was aware of her potential. It was why I immediately began pursuit, so I could shift the attention off her and onto myself." That was stretching it a bit, but whatever worked.

"You put some thought into it. Is that why you made some of the outrageous statements you did? In order to make me focus on you instead of her?"

"No, I made the statements because they needed to be made."

"Why didn't you kill the Uzumaki Fusō, Ise, and Nagato when you first saw them?"

"I'm not going to kill someone who doesn't try and kill me first. They approached me as an old friend and family member. I wasn't going to kill them for it."

"What made you think that Nagato has a dormant Rinnegan as opposed to a different, unknown Dōjutsu, or a mutated version of the Sharingan or Byakugan."

"I've healed shinobi with both the Sharingan and Byakugan, as well as children with a dormant version of the Sharingan. The Sharingan is the important thing right now. I've healed people with almost every stage of the Sharingan and as it advances it follows a distinctive pattern. From what I can tell there are four stages that have been publicly confirmed and I'm almost certain of another two stages beyond that."

"Explain those stages."

"The first stage is dormant, the Uchiha can't access any of the power, but there are several seeming erroneous or redundant nerves that seem to be just waiting for the right stimulus to activate. The next stages are the three tomoe. When each tomoe is gained, more nerves are formed in the eye, making it increasingly sensitive whenever chakra is channeled there. I think there is slightly less chakra required to use the Sharingan at each of these stages, but that's irrelevant. In each transition, the number of nerves doubles. There's a lot more that goes on, but if I go by the number of nerves, Nagato's eyes are the seventh stage of the Sharingan. The problem is that it's not the Sharingan anymore. There's clearly Uchiha DNA in the eye, but there's someone else's DNA as well. I can't read it very clearly with just chakra, but the person closest to it that I've healed is Tsunade's little brother, Nawaki, but it's only a passing resemblance—Senju DNA with a huge twist in it. There's this old story in the Uzumaki archives about the Sage of Six Paths and how his sons were the founders of the Senju and Uchiha clans, and well, if you look at it from a hereditary perspective, it looks like both sons were born with only part of the Sage's genetic code for the Rinnegan, so neither manifested it. Put them back together and bam! The Rinnegan is back."

The Hokage's face was completely blank by the time I finished.

"It's a bit of a stretch, but it makes sense," I insisted.

"A stretch you made from an old myth, Kichiro-kun," he reprimanded.

I stuck my tongue out at him. "Every story, no matter how crazy, has a grain of truth in it somewhere. Unless you can offer something equally plausible, my theory is the only one out there and you can only disprove it if Nagato manifests an entirely different Dōjutsu. Question: have you told Nagato or his parents about any of this?"

"I assumed they were already aware."

"Do you honestly believe they would let some stranger replace Nagato's eyes? They don't know about it, but I'll tell them later today."

"No, you will not tell them anything. Moving on to my next question. How did you know about Danzō's organization?"

"I didn't."

"I beg your pardon?"

"I had no idea that whatever the hell he had existed in the first place."

"So you're saying you made an accusation against an elder of this village with no basis whatsoever in fact, and it just _happened_ to be true."

He wasn't buying it.

"I've watched you say things you don't believe in, boy, and that statement had too much conviction."

I scrambled for an acceptable answer. "Fine! I meant it in an entirely different context. Every major shinobi in this village has a base of loyalty among the shinobi and civilians, individuals that would support them over you in the case of a coup." I was bullshitting so hard, but it technically wasn't a lie. "As far as I can tell, the base of power between you and Danzō is almost perfectly equal. The only difference between you is your perspective. Because Danzō still openly supports you, the point is moot. From my perspective, Danzō was trying to imply that you answered to him, which entirely turned the tables. The difference between you and Danzō, at least the difference I care about, is that I can persuade you to change your mind, or at the very least make you listen to my point of view. Danzō would smack me down the second I disagreed with him, if he had the authority. I didn't think he actually commanded ninja that operated independently of you. At least, I didn't expect it until after this war is over and your pet policies begin to take effect."

He wasn't satisfied with my answer, but he accepted it. "That's an interesting perspective."

"I'm an interesting person." I rolled my eyes, but inside I let out a mental sigh of relief that my BS was accepted.

"What do you know of Uchiha Madara?"

"The crazy co-founder of Konoha? I know enough about him that I don't want to be caught anywhere near him. I have a theory that he is still alive, but it doesn't have any proof." If I didn't have the Sandaime's full attention, I had it now.

"Why do you think that?"

I shrugged. "Because it supports my theory on what would have happened if the Kyuubi had been sealed in Kushina instead."

He gave me an odd look.

"What? I swear it's legit!" And would have happened if I wasn't there to screw things up.

"I just want to hear why you think Uchiha Madara is still alive."

"The bad guy never dies and Uchiha Madara being alive would be one of the worst things that could happen to Konoha considering the Shodai is dead, you know, _Murphy's Law_ and all that. If you asked me whose eyes Nagato has in his head, my guess would be that they are Madara's. There aren't any other Uchiha with Sharingan that could be advanced enough, and none of them have been buried without their eyes in recent years."

"Murphy's Law?"

I almost laughed at his strange pronunciation. Almost. "Yeah, it states that anything that can go wrong, will go wrong."

I probably sounded like I was spouting nonsense but the Hokage parsed through it well enough. "Do you honestly think Madara is still alive?"

"Yes," I answered truthfully.

"Do you think he had anything to do with the Genjutsus placed on you?"

"I don't know. I've never knowingly been under a Genjutsu strengthened by the Sharingan." _What do you think?_ I asked the Kyuubi.

He just growled and ignored me.

I flinched as the Hokage snapped his fingers in front of my face. "Kichiro-kun, I need you here right now, not lost in whatever you're thinking about."

"I'm listening," I slapped his hand away, or tried to, he pulled back before I could hit him.

"No, you weren't, I asked you the same question three times and you didn't react. A lapse like that could leave you dead or worse."

Well, that wasn't good. I didn't even realize I had spaced out. "What was the question?"

"When the Yamanaka looked into your head, your memories for your first year and a half in Konoha were almost entirely indecipherable. Do you have any explanation as to why?"

I thought for a while before coming up with a plausible explanation, being that for most of that time I continued to think and process things in English. It wasn't until several months before I took the Genin test that I truly mastered Japanese for myself, not by borrowing the original Kichiro's knowledge. It still didn't explain how nearly everything could be indecipherable. "I have a possible explanation, but what part was indecipherable? I can remember it all just fine, I'm almost certain a Genjutsu can't alter something that happened that long ago, unless there was something specific they were after, but that doesn't account for the widespread effect."

"The only thing the Yamanaka could retrieve were three images." He wasn't telling the entire truth. With extremely deliberate movements, the Sandaime stood and picked up a slim folder from his desk. He pulled out the first one and handed it to me while I set the teacup on his desk. "Can you identify these people?"

I looked down at the page in my hand as the Hokage retook his seat. It was the picture of my army buddies, taken on the last day of basic training. I wasn't completely taken by surprise that it came up. I was constantly drawing parallels between Sakumo's training and basic training for the U.S. Army. I had no idea what the other two images could have been.

"This image makes little sense, but the Yamanaka drew it as close as he could."

The Hokage placed the next image on top of the first. It was a sketch of an ultrasound of a baby about to be born. I recognized it immediately. At the top of the picture was my former last name, Jordanson, if I had any doubts. I sat stiffly looking down at the picture, glad that my bangs were long enough to hide my face.

"This last image appeared the most frequently."

He held it up in such a way that would force me to look up so he could see my reaction. I didn't move. I was fairly certain of what the last image was. I brushed the face of the infant in the ultrasound. The baby girl's heart had stopped shortly after her mother's. I had gone to the hospital that morning with a wife and a child ready to be born, and went home with two coffins that afternoon. I never understood, nor did I care about what had went wrong. They were just gone.

"Kichiro-kun?"

After a moment, during which the Hokage waited for my response, the door opened. I stood up sharply, the papers falling to the floor, and marched towards the door.

The Hokage grabbed my arm, but I twisted and struck the underside of his wrist as hard as I could, jerking free in the moment his grip loosened. "Stop!" He ordered sharply. I ignored him, my vision blurred by tears, and started to make a hand seal to shunshin out of the office.

Someone else grabbed my wrist and twisted my right arm behind my back while sweeping my feet out from underneath me, one of the very few non-lethal Uchiha takedown moves. I countered automatically, attaching my disabled arm to the back of my vest with chakra and throwing my entire weight onto the assailant's grip, pulling him slightly off-balance. I used the assailant as leverage to twist and swing my free arm into his elbow. The strike connected and I could feel the bones begin to crack under the strength of the strike, before his other hand grabbed my wrist and redirected it. By that time, I had already untwisted the arm behind my back and had both of my arms crossed in front of me, while still falling backwards. I attached the bottom of my feet to the straps of his right sandal and used all my strength to pull my hands to my feet. They figured out what I was trying to do before I could finish the movement and knock him off-balance. They released my hands and pulled up their leg, sending my head flying towards the ground.

I tried to twist to avoid the concussion, but I was falling too quickly. By the time I finished blinking, I was on the floor as if the maneuver had succeeded originally, surprisingly not-concussed. I started to twist out of the hold, but was released. Before I could react, a needle was stabbed into my thigh. I felt the drug entering the muscle and twisted, tearing it out of my leg and grabbing the hand that held it, shattering the object with a burst of chakra.

"What did you give him?" The Hokage demanded as I clamped my hand over my leg and tried to neutralize it.

"It's just a paralysis. With how much I gave him, he should be unconscious in a few seconds," Kagami answered as he pulled my hand away from my leg, causing me to lose control of the healing chakra.

"He's still a child! A paralysis that powerful could kill him!"

"It won't, there was barely enough in there to kill someone his age, and he has the Kyuubi on his side. He might not remember most of this morning, but he'll be fine by tomorrow."

Someone crouched and peeled open my eyelid. I tried to look around, but even the muscles of my eyes had been paralyzed. I could barely make out Kagami above me, before he gently closed my eyelids. He was lying to the Sandaime, he wanted me to hear what was going on.

"He's unconscious. I suppose that altercation answers the question of whether or not his skill slipped. Kid actually managed to hit me, and I had my Sharingan on and everything!"

I was most certainly not unconscious. I was dizzy, but not unconscious.

"Shut up, Kagami."

Good idea. Shut up so I could concentrate on trying to get rid of it, not that I could do jack shit with my hands on either side of me, open. I might have been able to heal if my hands were in a fist, but I needed to touch the injury to heal it, and for contaminants in the bloodstream, I needed to be within an inch or two of a major vein or artery, preferably with a hand over the heart of the victim.

"Come on, that's an impressive accomplishment for a full-grown Jōnin, much less an eleven-year-old medic, who should be relaxing at home. Give him some credit!"

"Kagami!"

"Fine, I'll get to the point. How the hell did you upset the boy this time? Also, why is he here? Where's Sakumo? And why did you change the time you were supposed to meet with him?"

"The boy came to me."

"Did you at least get your questions answered before you upset him?"

"Some of them. He and his sister have a scroll with pretty much the entirety of the Uzumaki library sealed in it. It explains a lot of the strange things coming out of his mouth. We assumed Hatake had just been boasting about the boy's intelligence, but I no longer believe he was exaggerating. The boy thinks on an adult level."

Probably because I actually was an adult, even if childhood hormones sometimes messed with my judgement and made me much more impulsive and antagonistic than I would normally be.

"That doesn't answer how you upset him."

"I think it has something to do with that damnable code he writes in."

"Meaning?"

"These were the only three images the Yamanaka could recover from the memories that are corrupted. On the clothes of these people, in the corner of this image, and on the collarbone of this woman, are all text in that code."

"The middle image, what is it?"

"I don't know, but he touched the picture here as if it meant something to him."

"It's a child, an infant," Kagami concluded with certainty after a long pause. "If I had to guess, I would say this is a picture of a child in the womb. The woman has the same text on her collar as in the corner of the picture. They're connected. They might be the same person, but she's clearly an adult. No, they're two separate people, most likely mother and child. It could be Kushina-chan and her mother, but the woman has no physical resemblance to Kichiro-kun or Kushina-chan. It must be someone else. The boy worked in the maternity ward of the hospital for some time, could it be someone he treated?"

"No, I already checked with the people he worked under at the hospital. None of them recognize the woman."

"She's definitely not ANBU or connected to it in any way. Speaking of ANBU, are you still considering officially keeping him in the program?"

"Yes, I see no reason to anger Tsunade any further and too many ANBU have been forced to return to regular duty injured because there isn't a medic that can treat them properly. Most of the organization is already familiar with him, so the transition shouldn't be a problem."

"Putting him with ANBU will place him in proximity to the two Iwa Jinchuuriki and the child from Kumo. Are you sure you want them all in the same place?"

"He is in the Iwa Bingo books as an S-ranked threat and we know he was in contact with both Iwa Jinchuuriki while there, somehow getting close enough to them that they brought him back here. I don't understand what or how he did it. Either way, he's our best shot at controlling the Jinchuuriki, and possibly containing the tailed beasts without resorting to the Shiki Fūjin, even if he needs the help of his clan. We'll keep them separated as much as possible."

"The other countries won't like it if they find out the Iwa Jinchuuriki came here."

"Suna and Kiri are in no shape to rebuild a military. Kumo wouldn't dare turn against us, not while their Jinchuuriki is still fixated on Kichiro-kun and we hold four of the Bijū. Our only worry is Iwa, and I don't think we can salvage the situation anyways."

"Ōnoki might come around."

"Not after this. What are you doing here so soon?"

"I like to be early."

"Liar."

"Spoilsport. Either way, the Gobi Jinchuuriki is not liking his accommodations with the Yonbi Jinchuuriki downstairs. Both still refuse to give their names or cooperate until they speak with Kichiro-kun. 'Indisposed' isn't going to last much longer as an excuse. Both Jinchuuriki are still showing the effects of Genjutsu manipulation, but not like what was put on our problematic little redhead. There is evidence on the Nibi Jinchuuriki of the same, though not nearly as strong. Good call in checking the rest as well. Iwa is most likely not responsible."

"Yes, how much do you know about the Sharingan?"

"Quite a bit, why?"

"Kichiro clams that beyond the three tomoe, there are two more natural stages of the Sharingan."

"Where did he hear this?" Kagami snapped defensively.

"He also claims that the Rinnegan can be gained if Uchiha DNA is combined with Senju DNA."

"There are two more stages, you know this, but only an old story supports that last claim and the clan is of the opinion that the story is implausible."

"Is it?"

"I'll take the pictures to Sakumo and see if he knows what's so important about them, he knows Kichiro-kun the best. For the time being, I think you need to back off the boy. Ask your questions and convey orders through messages or intermediaries. Every time you meet, he ends up worse for wear and with the worst luck in the village."

"It's not my—"

"No, it's not always your fault, sometimes circumstances force your hand, but he is an eleven-year-old boy under the scrutiny of the five major villages. You're the common denominator in it all. Stop wondering why the boy hates you."

"Consider yourself on take-care-of-Kichiro-kun duty," the Hokage muttered sourly.

A paper crumpled and a second later Kagami picked me up off the ground. "I know this war is stressful for you Hiruzen, but this immaturity needs to stop. Find a hobby, or get a punching bag that is not Kichiro or something. You are the Hokage and this is insulting to both the village and your predecessors."

Kagami opened the door and slammed it shut before a retort could be made.

"Come on, kid, you should be moving around soon," he grumbled at me before shunshining out of the tower.

* * *

 _Author's note: Greetings from Milwaukee! And Happy 500th Anniversary of Reformation Day! It's still all about Jesus!_


	39. Chapter 39

"We have a guest, Rei!" Kagami called into a house.

"Bring him into the main room!" A second voice, which I recognized as his wife, hollered back.

A few seconds later he laid me on a couch.

There was a yelp from the door a moment later. "Kagami!" She scolded. "Bringing back Sakumo-kun unconscious is one thing, but his student is quite another!"

"Could you _not_ say that like we have an affair?"

"Everyone except Hiruzen-sama and Sakumo-kun is out of the village, and you're not getting along with the former at the moment. Also, you spend more time with little Sakumo-kun than you do with me. It bloody well looks like you're having an affair."

"But Sakumo has a _baby_!"

"You have Yasu."

"Yasu is on a mission."

"I'll show you what I think of—"

"Innocent kid in the house! No maiming!"

"He's a medic, maybe he'll fix you up after I'm through with you." There was a crack.

"Aw hell, what is it with the elbow today? Does it have a 'hit me' sign or something?" Kagami whined.

"Yes," she deadpanned.

"Shit, who put that there? Better yet, how?"

"Sakumo dropped by this morning. Maybe now that Kichiro-kun is back to babysit Kakashi-chan he can take a few missions before he goes crazy at being bottled up inside the village."

"I am perfectly capable—I mean—you are perfectly capable of watching Kakashi so Sakumo can take a mission."

"Yes, but one of the draws of teaching an apprentice with a different specialization is the free childcare, which you never got because you turned Sakumo into your miniature copy."

"He's got his own specialties."

"I wasn't aware that the his sabre and your tantō were so different."

"They are! Their katas are—you've been messing with me this entire time, haven't you?"

"Yep!"

"Well, Sakumo should be dropping by sometime in the next hour. Think you can fix Kichiro?"

"He's not a toy, Kagami."

"But he has those twiggy arms and legs like those dolls Yasu used to play with!"

"I'm about to sell you to a fangirl."

"Please! Anything but the fangirls! What do you want? I'll give you my firstborn—wait, I already did that—I'll give you Sakumo's firstborn!" Kagami sobbed theatrically. "My dear, dear Rei, I love you more than words can express! I'll be your slave for life—wait, I'm already your slave—I'll make Sakumo your slave for life!"

She snickered. "You should really stop selling your student."

"He doesn't mind. Seriously, don't sell me to those fangirls again."

"That was over thirty years ago, Kagami, and we weren't even married. You are a full-grown Jōnin, get over it."

"My dear Rei, you know nothing of the horrors of obsessive females. Your beauty is more lasting and more thorough than—"

"Shut up."

"So harsh!"

"Children are not to be objectified or sold into slavery."

"Sakumo's a big bad Jōnin and he has a kid of his own. He doesn't count."

"I'll buy that when you stop treating him like he's eight."

"I do not! Sakumo's here to confirm it!"

A second later, someone knocked on the door.

"Come in! I need your baby!" Kagami called towards the door.

After a minute, a set of footsteps entered the room. "What do you want Kakashi for?" Sakumo asked warily.

"Rei-chan wants a baby and I'm not going to risk castration again for knocking her up." A disgusting crack and a dull thud followed that statement.

"Think he's out?" Sakumo asked.

"He knows better than to get up."

"Then I suppose you can answer this. Why is Kichiro unconscious on your couch?"

"I'm not rightly sure, but you might want to stick around until he wakes up or Kagami might try and sell him to see how much the fangirls are willing to pay."

A pained protest answered that, followed by a another thud.

"Here, take Kakashi for a moment." The second I assumed Kakashi left Sakumo's arms, he started screaming as if he was in agony.

While Rei tried to calm him, Sakumo rolled me onto my back and pressed my right hand against my chest. Kakashi quieted slightly and Sakumo took some brief vitals. The second he was done he retook Kakashi, who automatically stopped screaming.

"Kichiro will be fine. As soon as he can, he'll start purging whatever drug is in him. Kakashi is the primary reason I'm here early. He won't let me put him down! Every time I let go of him, he starts screaming until I pick him back up. Earlier, he was in a dead sleep, I swear, he was so fast asleep his chakra was almost perfectly still. I put him down so I could get some rest and in a second he's awake and screaming his head off!"

Rei snorted. "I think you're just exaggerating."

"I left him in his nursery because you said to make him sleep alone, but he just kept screaming. I left him in there for ten minutes and he barely took a breath, I swear!"

"That's odd," Rei commented.

"He's just giving you hell, Sakumo, that's what babies do," Kagami groaned. "Yasu used to throw a Kage-level fit whenever Rei or I had to leave for a mission out of the village."

"Yasu was three years old when that started. Kakashi isn't even two _months_ old yet," Rei snapped back.

"Is he sick?"

"Not that I can tell. I was going to ask Kichiro but _someone_ drugged him," Sakumo growled pointedly.

"He could be a genius with a sense of humor," Kagami suggested.

"He's not a genius, I already tested that theory. He's just more alert than a normal kid."

"Or he could be off the charts and messing with the test."

"I prefer not to think about how good of a shinobi my kid could make until he can stay awake for more than an hour or two at a time."

At least the day was turning out alright for me. Kakashi had taken my words to heart and was in the process of torturing his father. I totally did not feel bad about abusing Sakumo through an infant. I finally started to regain control over my chakra and was metabolizing the paralytic as fast as I could. Thank goodness it only seemed to affect skeletal muscle, otherwise I would probably have been dead. I made a mental note to learn to use medical ninjutsu with different parts of my body, mostly so I wouldn't be caught for long in case a real enemy decided I needed drugs or poisons pumped into my system and my hands were busy elsewhere. I made a second note to figure out how to throw jutsu with my feet as well.

Rei started asking the standard mindless 'how's the baby' questions. I ignored it in favor of concentrating. The paralytic stuck in my muscles, making them heavy and slow, side effects I couldn't do anything about, but ten minutes later, I was able to sit up. Since then, the conversation had moved into the kitchen so Kagami could tend to his split lip and bloody nose.

I stood up without much of a problem. Walking was a bit of a challenge, but I made it to the door of the kitchen, staggering like a drunk.

"Kagami, you are now on my shit list," I announced. It came out slurred, but intelligible.

"And you look like you've been drinking," Kagami retorted. "Sakumo, have you taught your cute little student anything?"

"Sensei, I am going to thrash you eight ways to Sunday. Outside, _now_."

"It's gonna be a few years before you're good enough to do that, Sakumo-chan."

A low growling sounded from Sakumo's throat.

"I'm always up for kicking your ass."

Without another word, Sakumo grabbed me with his free arm and hauled me out onto the back porch and dropped me on one of the chairs. Kakashi landed in my lap, grinning, while Kagami and Sakumo faced off in the backyard.

Kakashi fell asleep quickly, without any fussing, and it took all my concentration to keep my head up. The problem with speeding up my metabolism to break down the paralytic, or any other drug or poison, was that it took a lot of energy, leaving me starving and barely able to keep my eyes open once I regained full control of my body. My limbs still felt heavy and numb, but I was inclined to think it was simply exhaustion. Eventually, I laid down on the bench, Kakashi's reassuring warmth snuggled against my chest, one hand gripping my hair tightly while the tiny nails of his other hand pricked at the skin of my wrist. I might have drifted off for a few moments, but woke when Sakumo yelped.

The match had ended with Sakumo prostrate on the ground, Kagami's tantō pricking the base of his skull. Kagami's elbow ended up completely broken, but he still clearly won. I had no desire to even twitch. Even though the wooden bench was uncomfortably hard, the idea of moving was extremely distasteful.

"I still don't know how you managed to dislocate both of my arms," Sakumo grumbled.

"Your old sensei still has some tricks, even though I'm getting old."

Sakumo muttered an unintelligible response under his breath. I flinched away as he laid a hand on my forehead, but didn't protest. I had gotten used to being touched and treated like a kid a long time ago. Even if it felt patronizing at times, it was a kind of security and reassurement I never had before I ended up in the Naruto world.

"Take him home, Sakumo. Don't bother bringing him to the Hokage tomorrow, just take him straight to headquarters. You can drop Kakashi off here. Explain everything to Kichiro-kun then get going, both of you need your rest. I'm going to go see my own medic about this damn arm."

Sakumo affirmed with a grunt and gently extracted Kakashi without waking him. Once the infant was settled in the crook of his right arm, Sakumo pulled me upright.

"Besides your family and a handful of others, no one knows where you went or even that you're actually back. That march into the Hokage's office was hidden by your ANBU guards. You're going to stay hidden, most likely until the end of the war. In order for your skill not to go to waste, you'll be operating inside of ANBU as a medic. Unless things get much worse, you won't be leaving the village. One medic for all of ANBU is enough, so you won't be too busy."

"Missions?"

"That decision hasn't been made. How well you do during initiation will determine how many missions you might take."

I sat up, more awake as a thought crossed my mind. "ANBU take assassination missions."

"Look at me, Kichiro," Sakumo responded seriously. I took a deep breath and met his eye "You're on the non-combat roster. Even if you shatter every single ANBU record, you're not going to be put on combat or assassination missions, trust me. The Hokage, his advisors, and the ANBU General are fully aware of how much you've already sacrificed, and they're not going to force you into combat until you are truly ready for it."

"It's just healing?"

"You might still be training under me, but yes, the only work you'll be doing is healing."

"What about the hospital?"

"They've been operating without you for almost three years now. You won't be working there."

"And my clearance level?"

"You still have access to almost everything, which you'll need to create medical files for most ANBU."

"I don't want—"

"We're not having this conversation. The decision has already been made. Do you have any questions about your immediate responsibility?"

"Will I be working under you or someone else?"

"Since there are no medics in ANBU, you'll be working directly under the ANBU General."

"Do I have to wear a mask?"

"As long as you are within headquarters, no. It's one of the reasons why ANBU are never seen inside of the hospital. Besides, its unsettling to be at the mercy of an impersonal mask, especially while vulnerable. Any other questions?"

"Why can't I work in the hospital and treat ANBU alongside everyone else, maybe in a separate room or something?"

"It was unilateral action by the Hokage that placed you in ANBU to begin with. The General didn't like it. If it wasn't for the fact that his men—and women—are dying because of their lack of reliable medical care, you would be working in the hospital as a regular medic and a falsified stint in ANBU to get you out of the spotlight would have been the explanation for your absence."

"That still doesn't answer—"

"Even though you don't remember it, Iwa tortured you. You didn't give Iwa any information about Konoha or Uzu. It may have been primarily because of a seal, but through the entire ordeal, you kept your sanity. The General knows that, and he would be a fool to not take advantage of the ways ANBU would benefit if you became an active agent in a few years."

"I didn't even know—"

"Every ANBU is tested to their limits in every branch of the shinobi arts, obviously, but they're not just tested on what they can do, their beliefs, resolve, and every other aspect that makes them who they are is tested as well to determine what missions they are sent on. ANBU has a seventy-two percent operative return rate compared to the rest of the forces ninety-two percent. Exactly ten percent of missions are suicide missions, and thirteen percent result in the capture of operatives who very rarely are recovered. Those are the peacetime statistics. Wartime is much worse. The fact that you managed to stand your ground as well as escape, no matter how roundabout it was, means you have bragging rights only one other living person who was or is a part of ANBU has. Considering you're a medic and have a working knowledge or mastery of all Taijutsu forms and weaponry used in ANBU—"

"You manipulative—" I snapped, but Sakumo cut me off as if I never spoke.

"—in a few years, you could be a perfect emergency replacement for any team."

"You intended to bring me into ANBU from the beginning, didn't you?" It was more of a statement than a question, but Sakumo still flinched at the accusation.

"No," Sakumo snapped coldly. "I intended for you to take the traditional route to Jōnin and stay there. I made Jōnin when I was fourteen and ever since have had a foot in both the regular shinobi corps and ANBU, because of who I was associated with. It's a stressful position and I never intended to let you in it, which is why I only taught you the basics in stealth, so you wouldn't be picked up during the ANBU scouting. Obviously, it didn't work."

I relaxed back against the bench.

"Even if the other factors weren't in play, you still wouldn't be taking missions. Your fighting skills are nowhere near where they should be for ANBU and your unwillingness to kill unless you have no other choice is something that would have made sure you never made it into ANBU, which is another reason I never addressed it beyond making sure you wouldn't die. ANBU only takes the strongest of shinobi, no matter what their age is. There are specializations, yes, but every ANBU is on par with the average Jōnin."

"So I'm stuck showing up at headquarters every morning to train and heal and then go home every night, like what I did before I became a Genin."

"You'll be living at headquarters. You might get to go home once or twice a month, depending on how well you do in training and the demand for you as a medic."

"I don't want to do this. I'd rather take another mission to the lines and healing there without discrimination."

"Noted."

"But it doesn't change anything, does it?"

"It does not. I might have been able to pull that off, but I have Kakashi to care for and I can't cover your ass in the field at the same time. I will do right by my son."

I slumped back into the bench. "I know the Hokage isn't trying to screw me over, but I'm finding it extremely difficult not to hate him."

"I'm aware, Kichiro, but this is for the best. Let's take you home and I'll pick you up after breakfast tomorrow. There's nothing either of us can do about it now." When I shrugged my response, Sakumo wrapped his hand around my arm and pulled me into a shunshin. We landed on the back porch of the Uzumaki clan house. From what I could tell, it was just after lunchtime. Apparently, I had lost more time than I thought. As Sakumo and I entered through the back, we waited to watch as Takeshi escorted the civilian kids out of the front door, each of them holding tightly to the collars of their dogs.

"Hurry up! You'll all be late for your classes. Go on! Gin, it's your responsibility to make sure Akashi and Misaki get to their classroom."

"Why can't Minato-chan or Kushina-chan do it since they're still here?" The oldest boy whined and suddenly pointed at me. "'Chiro-nii is here too! Why can't he?"

"Kichiro-kun hasn't had a chance to eat his lunch and both Minato and Kushina are behind in their Fūinjutsu lessons." Takeshi didn't even miss a beat.

"Why can't you?" The boy continued to complain.

"Because I have to clean up your mess, now stop complaining or I'll actually make you do your homework tonight. All of you, scat!" Takeshi managed to herd them all out the door, and shut it smartly behind him. He looked more than a little frustrated as he strode towards us. "Hatake-san, I need to talk to you. Kichiro-kun, Ise is going to be home in the next hour and it's your head on the chopping block if he catches you looking like death warmed over when you just made it out of the hospital to begin with. Go clean up, the shower in the corner of the third floor is finally working. Your old clothes are probably too small, but if Kushina hasn't gotten you new ones, Minato's will fit you just fine. Now scat!"

I rolled my eyes at him before heading towards the staircase and dragging myself up. I didn't look that bad, just a bit of dirt and dust in my clothes and a residual bruise. I waved to Kushina on the second floor when she looked up to see me. Minato didn't look up from whatever seal he was working on. Fusō sat beside Nagato at a separate desk facing away from the stairs and since Kushina didn't say anything before she leaned back over a section of Minato's project, they never knew I was there as I continued to drag myself up.

The surprisingly hot water eased the stiffness in my muscles, and the water woke me up, though I was still hungry. I took my time in the shower. A few minutes in, I heard someone knock on the bathroom door.

"Who is it?" I called out.

The door opened a little bit. "It's Kushina, I just got some of Minato's clothes so you don't have to put your uniform back on." She said through the crack.

"Thank you. You can just leave it outside."

The door opened and closed. I assumed she had left and picked up the bar of soap to finish washing my hair. "Can I ask you something, Nii-san?" She asked, her voice on the other side of the curtain. I jumped and dropped the soap in surprise, swearing. Of course, it had to land on my toe.

"Shit! Kushina, I'm in the shower!"

"So?"

"So? People don't wear clothing in the shower."

"Minato doesn't mind when I bother him during his showers. Besides, I've seen you naked plenty of times before."

I spluttered at that before hurrying to rinse my hair and grab the towel on the hook outside the curtain to wrap around my waist, before exiting the shower somewhat decent. I wasn't self-conscious or anything, but she was a _ten-year-old little girl_. I put my hands on her shoulders and steered her out the door. "We are going to have a long talk _after_ I get dressed. Thank you for the clothes."

I shut the door behind her and quickly pulled on said clothing before opening the door again, while drying my hair with the towel.

" _Now_ I can help you. What do you need?"


	40. Chapter 40

"You smell like Minato." Was Kushina's response.

"I'm not sure if that is a good thing or a bad thing."

Kushina pulled me over to take a seat on the mattress, which seemed to be the only semi-comfortable spot to sit in the entire warehouse-style room. "Can I ask you a question?" She plopped down across from me.

"You can ask me anything."

"Are you sure?"

"Yes, I'm sure."

"And you'll answer?"

"I'll answer as honestly as I can."

"Can I tell you anything?"

"Anything you want."

"Promise?"

"Promise."

"Is there something wrong with me?"

"Not that I'm aware of."

She grabbed my hand and slapped it onto her forehead. "Make sure."

I sighed and performed a basic diagnostic jutsu. "You haven't been eating enough vegetables and you're a little banged up from a fight of some kind I assume you had this morning, but otherwise, you're perfectly fine."

"Are you sure?"

"Yes."

"Are you absolutely sure nothing inside of me is broken?"

"Do you think something's wrong?"

"I don't know! Can't you just use your magic fingers to make sure?"

"It's not magic, Kushina."

"Well, then is there a way for you to be absolutely sure?"

"Nothing is one hundred percent, Kushina, but there is a jutsu—no, there's no reason to."

"Do it."

"No."

"Nii-san, please!" She begged.

"No, there's no need."

"Please?"

"Absolutely not."

"Why?"

"Because there's no reason to."

"I'm asking you! Isn't that reason enough?"

"My answer is still no."

She opened her mouth to argue but I interrupted her before she could say anything.

"And no other medic will even consider it without a damn good reason."

"Why?"

"When I left Konoha, only a handful of medics were able to safely perform the technique. Hell, if it wasn't for the combination of Sakumo's training and the Kyuubi, I wouldn't be able to handle the chakra cost in the first place."

"Please!"

"Tell me why and I'll consider it."

She pulled her knees up to her chest. "You're going to think I'm silly."

"You're being silly right now trying to dodge the subject."

"Please, Nii-san?"

"Kushina, I just woke up to find I've been gone for a year and a half. For the year before that, I barely saw you. I can't read you like I used to and I don't have any context to make a guess on whatever the hell you want to know or share. This dodging-the-subject-until-Kichiro-figures-it-out thing is not going to work because I'm not going to be able to figure it out. I don't have the patience to play this game with you."

Kushina scrubbed at her eyes and I inexplicably felt horribly guilty.

"Why don't you start from the beginning? What made you feel the need to barge in while I was showering?"

"Your hair is sticking up in the back."

"Kushina." I ran my fingers through my hair to smooth the cowlick. After a minute, I mimicked her position and tapped her hand to get her attention. "Hey, what do you want to talk to me about?"

"It's silly."

"Maybe, but it's important to you."

"You're going to think I'm silly."

"I promise I'll take you seriously, okay?"

"Pinky promise?"

"Pinky promise."

It took a few false starts and indecipherable stammering, but she eventually managed to form a coherent sentence. "Jiraiya-sensei said I should train with other girls sometimes, but everyone my age is still a Genin and they all hate me." She fidgeted with her toes. "I don't know why and every time I try and talk to them, they're all mean."

Well, it wasn't hard to see why. She was more talented and driven than most of the other kunoichi, wartime or not. She also had the attention of the up-and-coming star of Konoha, at least, I assumed Minato was on a direct path to the Hokage's seat. Kushina also had one of the Sannin as her mentor and a famous medic for a brother. In the eyes of her peers, she was propped up on a pedestal and they hated her for having luck they did not.

"I thought it was just because they were intimidated because I outrank them so I went to talk to Mikoto-sempai, she's a Chuunin too and people from the Academy still like her!" She shook her head. "But Mikoto-sempai was just mean. She said I was a 'sick little know-it-all brat' and she said I wasn't a 'real woman' and I was just a 'messed-up kid playing dress-up'. Then, the hospital wouldn't let me access my medical records. No one would believe me when I said I was sick and didn't know how or what I was sick with."

"Tell me, do you know the last mission Mikoto-san was sent on?"

"Village guard duty."

"What about you?"

"I'm suspended."

"What mission before you were suspended?"

She shifted uncomfortably. "Combat rotation in River."

"How long has she been a shinobi?"

"A year longer than us."

"Of the two of you, who has more missions, experience, and skill?"

Kushina shifted uncomfortably. "My stats are higher than hers, but I always work tag-team with Minato, so they're kind-of skewed."

"She's just jealous, Kushina."

"Is she?"

"Most likely. Tell me, who's her best friend?"

"She's and Uchiha, they don't have friends," Kushina sneered haughtily.

"And your best friend is Minato. Imagine if you were in her position and had to act like a perfect member of your clan, always upstanding and just _better_ than everyone else, then a pair of nobodies, who always seem to think the world is sunshine and flowers, surpass you with what seems to be minimal effort, score the best sensei the village, and never get told off for acting out."

"Fusō sure ripped us a new one for that prank on the Academy."

"Yes, but it's already forgotten. A stunt like yours, whatever it was, would have gotten Mikoto-san shunned from her family and clan for what could possibly have been years."

"But we both want to be super strong kunoichi and we can be even better if we're friends and can work together. She's really good with Genjutsu and I'm really good with Taijutsu. We could totally get twice as good if we trained together and shared the Ninjutsu that we know because we're both really good at Ninjutsu too!"

"As a female of the Uchiha clan, it will be a long time before Mikoto-san sees true combat, if she ever does."

"That's a good thing! I don't want anyone else to have to fight on the front lines, that's why Minato and I take the assignments, even though Jiraiya-sensei doesn't like it, because the other kids shouldn't have to, including Mikoto-sempai."

"To most other people, it makes you seem like a patronizing glory hog."

"I don't mean it like that!"

"No, but it comes off like that, intentional or not. There's nothing wrong with you. As for why your records are sealed, you need clearance to see any medical files, even your own."

"Why?"

"Because the medical records of a shinobi are an extremely powerful tool that can be used against them. Very few medics are capable of healing an injury as if it never happened, and that can be a liability in many situations."

"But I haven't—"

"Your files were classified the moment you made Genin. Injured or not, its protocol. Only medics and team leaders have access."

"Still—why did she say I wasn't a real woman?"

I felt myself going red at the awkward topic. "If she meant what I think she meant, this is not a conversation you should be having with me. In fact, Fusō would probably be a better person to ask."

"Why? You're just as smart as her."

"It's not a question of intelligence."

Kushina didn't understand as I started to shift awkwardly. "You said you would answer my questions!" She accused. My face burned. "Why are you all red?"

"I'll answer it if you really want me to, but I think Fusō should be the one to answer your questions—it's not my place."

"Why?"

"Um, that's also why you should talk to her."

"But you know the answer."

"Um, if she meant what I think she meant, yes."

"Then why won't _you_ answer?"

"Because if I answer, you're going to slap me."

"No, I won't."

"Yes, you will."

"No, I won't."

"Yes, you will."

"Fusō is giving Nagato a Fūinjutsu lesson right now."

"She'll answer your question anyway."

"I don't want to talk to Fusō, I want to talk to _you_! What do you think Mikoto-sempai meant? She kept saying I was sick but you said I'm not so what's going on?"

I had no idea how to respond to that and shifted uncomfortably.

"He's right," Ise said without warning, leaning against the rail of the staircase. Kushina whipped around, startled, flinging two kunai towards him without even looking. I barely managed to grab one of the kunai scattered across the floor and throw it fast enough to intercept Kushina's. Thank goodness that she threw the kunai so they were less than an inch apart, otherwise Ise would have gotten hit by at least one of them. My heart pounded as one of the kunai barely nicked Ise's neck and all three hit the wall behind him with a dull thud. Ise didn't even see the kunai, he only flinched at the scratch and turned to see the kunai in the wall at awkward angles.

The second I was sure Kushina actually recognized him and wasn't responding as if he was a threat, I fell backwards on the mattress with a groan.

"I'm so sorry!" She exclaimed, leaping up to dash over to Ise and hugging him tightly.

"It's fine, Kushina-chan, no harm done. I should have known better than to announce myself like that."

"I'll make it up to you, I promise!"

"It's fine, Kushina-chan," he assured her, patting her head. "Kichiro, you look like hell, again."

"Well, I feel like hell. Who needs me now?"

"No one. Your medical history was destroyed last night. I'm assuming that means you're headed into ANBU, correct?"

I scowled.

"Tonight or tomorrow?"

"Wait a minute! _ANBU_?" Kushina shrieked, albeit quiet enough not to let her voice accidentally carry out of the room. "As in black ops?"

My scowl deepened.

"It's supposed to be an honor to be chosen. ANBU isn't something you can apply for."

"I leave tomorrow."

At that, Ise started to scowl. "Is there any way to delay that?"

"Not that I know of."

He sighed. "What do you want for dinner then?"

"Ramen!" Kushina piped up immediately.

"We've had ramen three times in the past week, you've had it eight. No."

"Eleven," Kushina answered absently, her gaze intensely focused on me.

"It doesn't matter to me, I just need food," I answered, smirking at Kushina until she realized what she just said.

"How the hell could you possibly know I had ramen without you?" She exclaimed. "I was being sneaky and everything!"

"That is for me to know and you to figure out," Ise responded.

"You're a civilian! That's not fair!"

"You fight faster than he can see, I think it's perfectly fair," I inserted.

Kushina let go of Ise and raced across the room to belly flop across me. I groaned and poked at her side. She used to be ticklish, but apparently not anymore.

"You shouldn't have to go," Kushina murmured into my shoulder.

"I don't want to."

Suddenly, I could feel her thinking.

"And I don't want any part in—"

"Minato! I got it, I got it!" She screeched in ecstasy and pushed herself off me. I winced as her elbow went into my gut before she dashed out of the room.

"Don't try anything before someone checks your work, brats!" Ise bellowed after her.

"What are they trying to figure out?" I asked, curious.

"The Nidaime's Hiraishin."

If I had anything in my mouth, it would have been spat out at that. I sat up instead.

"Okay, um, who exactly put them up to that?"

"I have no idea, I don't even have clearance to see the formula they're working with."

Ise walk across the room to sit down in the spot Kushina had just vacated.

"So, ANBU," he began awkwardly. "Medic?"

"Yes."

"Are you staying in Konoha or travelling with teams?"

"Sakumo said I would be staying here."

"You know, ANBU is probably for the best. A few weeks ago, you were updated from a C-rank shinobi to an A-rank in most Bingo books. In Iwa's you're listed as an S-rank threat. From what I hear, that puts you in a class of heavy-hitters you're not ready for."

"I'd rather just work a boring job at the hospital."

"Yeah, kiddo, I know. You're safe though. ANBU headquarters has to be the safest place in the village, except, perhaps, the Hokage tower."

"I hate this."

"I know, kiddo. Have you eaten lunch yet?"

"No."

"Alright, how about you come and get something with me? There's a new ramen bar opening today and I only told Kushina no to ramen."

"Is the entire family obsessed with the stuff?"

"Minato started it," Ise petulantly said. "But otherwise, yes. Aren't you? You've still technically lived with the two of them for longer."

"I prefer _spaghetti_."

"That sounds disgusting."

"It's not as good as _pizza_ , but it's a good enough substitute."

"I've never heard of any of those."

"I'll figure out how to make _pizza_ eventually and then I'll make a killing selling it."

Ise snorted. "You mean to say this pizza thing is something you made up?"

"No, I'm not taking credit from the person who invented _pizza_ , whoever they were."

"Okay, so what is this thing?"

"What? How does no one know the joy that is _pizza_?"

"Enlighten me."

"Fine! It's round and normally it's about this size," I held my hands out to demonstrate. "The bottom part is _bread_ and then on top of the _bread_ is _tomato_ _sauce_ and then on top of that is _mozzarella cheese_ , and then on top of that is pretty much anything you want. I like all kinds of meat on it like _bacon_ , _sausage_ , _ham_ , and _pineapple_."

"I only understood about half of that."

"You are deprived."

"I think you mean 'depraved'."

"No, just deprived for never knowing the joys of a good _pizza_."

"If you say so."

"Now you're just teasing."

"I've been teasing you."

I stuck my tongue out at him.

"You are surprisingly immature."

"I have to cope somehow. At least it's somewhat healthy."

Ise grimaced.

* * *

 _Author's note: Don't forget to leave a review! I always want to hear what you think!_


	41. Chapter 41 - Part 7

The next morning, Sakumo knocked on the front door the second I finished the last bite of my breakfast. Kushina's idea for the Hiraishin hadn't panned out and the two of them were still sulking from it.

"I'll see you three sooner than you know it," I assured them, standing up from my place.

"Wait!" Nagato cried and dashed out of the dining room. He returned a few seconds later with a piece of paper in his hand and barreled towards me. I barely managed to avoid getting stuck with a seal.

"What's this?" I asked Nagato as Sakumo impatiently his own way inside through the window.

"A seal," he responded and tried to stick a second one on me, but I caught his wrist before he could.

"What seal?"

"One I spent all day yesterday working on."

I waited for him to elaborate. Instead he twisted and tried to kick me in the ribs, earning himself a face-full of the floor and paralyzed from the shoulders down. "Now tell me why I should let _another_ person put a damn seal on me."

"It's so you can't get caught in another Genjutsu as long as the seal is active. It works, I swear."

"Fusō doesn't like it when you swear," Kushina snickered as she plucked the seal out of Nagato's limp hand.

"Hey! Give that back! It's for Nii-san not you!"

I kept my knee in Nagato's back as I snatched the seal out of Kushina's hand and took Nagato's other seal. Kushina started to protest, but when I sat down on Nagato's back and released the paralysis, she knew better than to argue.

"I tested it. Not even my Uchiha friend could get around it."

I raised an eyebrow. "This will come off the second I start sweating."

"I can put a permanent one on! You're crushing me!"

I lifted my feet off the ground so all my weight was on him.

"Hey! You're being mean!" He wheezed.

"You're the one who supposedly wants to be a ninja."

Nagato shut up after that and with a twist I didn't catch, slammed me onto my back.

Or at least tried to. Instead, he slammed a pillow into the ground while I examined the seal on the other side of the room. I caught the problem almost immediately and walked back over to him. "You're on the right track with this, but it'll only work until it runs out of chakra, and each Genjutsu makes it use up a certain amount depending on how powerful the Genjutsu is to begin with." I pressed them into Nagato's hand. "Two more things. First, _never_ stick a seal on a ninja without their explicit permission, for obvious reasons and with obvious exceptions. Unless you're a medic, then you can stick anything you want on anyone you want and they just have to deal with it. Second, I appreciate the thought, Nagato, and if you manage to perfect it, I'd be happy to be your test dummy." Nagato hugged me tightly. "I'll also be looking forward to your challenge, got it?"

Nagato nodded, making Minato scowl.

"What's with the sour faces, you two?" I asked the resident duo.

"I should have thought of that," Kushina gritted out.

"You're still my favorite little sister," I pulled her into a headlock and messed up her hair. I turned to Minato. "Good luck with figuring out the Hiraishin," I said sincerely.

"Hey!" Kushina protested. "I'm working on it too!"

I messed up her hair some more. "Yeah, but my money is on Minato figuring it out and mastering it first."

The blond smiled brightly at me.

"I bet you he won't!" Kushina snapped hotly.

"If I'm wrong, you have to jump in the lake in the middle of winter and touch the bottom."

Kushina scowled. "If I win, you gotta run through the village in a pink dress!"

"You better get a move on it, Minato's already upstairs."

Kushina stuck her tongue out at me before racing after Minato, Nagato following in their wake.

"Now if only everyone else is as easily motivated as them," Sakumo said quietly as I turned to him.

"If everyone was as easily motivated and powerfully driven, then the average person would be incomprehensibly powerful."

"Wise words. We're late, are you ready to go?"

"Ready as I'll ever be."

Sakumo's hand tightened around my arm and he pulled me into a shunshin.

(-_-)

ANBU headquarters were almost immediately a disappointment. It was nothing like a secret base like I was expecting. It looked almost identical to a run-down college dorm. Most of the doors were open as Sakumo pulled me through the halls. I peered inside one room and noticed that it could have been a nice dorm hall, because each individual had a room to themselves, as well as a sink and toilet. Down the hall were communal showers, and just past those was a common area.

"Yo! Everyone! It's the Uzumaki!" Someone announced as Sakumo pulled me inside.

I waved nervously. No one was wearing a mask and no one was armed, even though they were all in black uniforms, but that only made me more uneasy. Only the best of shinobi, like the Hokage, generally walked around unarmed. What unnerved me the most was the teenager dangling upside-down from a rope around his ankle in the middle of the room.

"Eh, don't worry about him," someone a year or two older than me draped his arm around my shoulders, accidentally flipping his overlong, dull brown hair in my face. "He's an arrogant prick who thought he could pick on us younger ones even though he's the rookie. Warning: I'll do the same to you if you get smart with me, little kohai."

"I'll keep that in mind?" I responded uncertainly.

"Then we'll get along just fine. I'm Roach, like a cockroach."

I gave him an odd look.

"It's a nickname. I got it after I messed up the same suicide jutsu twice, hobbled back after being crushed in three rock falls, and survived getting on the General's bad side in a training exercise. I'm quite proud of it. Come on! You're rooming with me since General-ka-chan doesn't like us kids living by ourselves and I'm _finally_ getting out of the room with the bastard!"

"Bring him downstairs by nine, Roach," Sakumo called as I was dragged off by the overexcited kid.

"So, we got our own bathroom, since apparently we're both too young to use the co-ed ones. Guess what! Guess what!" He continued to chatter as he dragged me down the hall and into a room that resembled the very first apartment I ever owned. In other words, it was tiny. There was a bunk bed in the middle of the opposite wall, two desks facing each other in the center of the room, one of them with a box overflowing with paperwork, a wardrobe on either side of the door, and chest of drawers on either end of the bed. The top bunk had what looked to be roach-patterned white sheets. I didn't want to know how he managed to get ahold of that particular pattern. What I assumed to be my bed was covered with plain, white sheets and a heavier white blanket. The same heavy blanket was folded at the foot of Roach's bed.

As I stopped beside my desk, I noticed a locker tucked on the other side of each wardrobe, almost completely hidden.

"Yeah, we're too young to be allowed in the locker rooms too, but that means we're allowed to have weapons in our rooms. Your armor and mask is in there. I took a peek at it. It's Fox, in case you're wondering. Totally unoriginal, but I didn't get a say in it." Roach took two steps and jumped up on his bed. "So, I gotta ask, did you really smack down the Yonbi? How'd you do it? How long ago? Think you could do it again? Can you teach me? Is Hatake a cool sensei? Have you really never done a D-rank? Are you really the only person Tsunade lets mouth off to her? Did you really have an argument with the Hokage?" All the questions spilled out in less than ten seconds. He waited eagerly for my answer.

"Um, in the order you asked. No, I didn't, never, no, no, I guess, I haven't, I don't know, and yes, I've had several arguments with the Hokage. We don't like each other very much." I studied him carefully and he just smirked under my gaze. He seemed slightly familiar.

"To answer your unasked question, yes, you've met me as an ANBU. In fact, I've impersonated you several times and probably know almost as much about you as your sister does."

That was all I needed to put the pieces together. "You look a lot taller as Bird."

"It's just a Henge. I've been in ANBU for half my life, which is technically more than most can claim. As ANBU my size isn't intimidating enough, so I compensate. It's really cool, but I'll only teach it to you if you trade me something for it. _All magic_ ," he held one finger up. " _Comes with a price!_ " He held the other finger up in a very familiar impression, accent and all.

"If I hear you say that nonsense one more time, Roach, I assure you, I'll crush you worse than any bug you're named after!" Someone who was passing by snarled in the door before continuing.

" _Not you too!_ " I snarled back once I got over the surprise and shut the door.

He flinched, but recovered in an instant. "Nah, I didn't come from wherever you did. To-san taught me English and told me tons of stories, said it might save my life someday. From the look you're giving me, it might just end it. Don't worry, he swore me to secrecy."

I crossed my arms.

"Hatake scared the shit out of me when he figured it out. No, seriously, I shat my pants when he confronted me. The man's an ANBU legend. There's rumors that the General himself trained him, but that was long before the time of anyone here who's willing to talk, so there's no way for anyone to confirm anything."

"You are far too excitable."

"Probably. There's only two others here who are our age-ish. They're both girls, twins, the second set in ANBU and scary as hell, even if they're younger than you. They just finished initiation. Broke my record in marksmanship and contortions, which is impressive, though it'll be a long time before anyone beats my record in the active corps. Come on! Let's go meet them!"

I found myself dragged out of the room and across the hall. Of course, I tripped on the threshold and landed on my face.

"Hey, Twins number two! Look who Hatake just dragged in!"

"Be nice, Roach!" The two snapped.

"But it's just Uzumaki!" He protested.

"You!" The girls shrieked as I climbed to my feet.

"Me," I scowled as I looked up. The two girls were identical in every way. Their blond hair framed their faces with ringlets and they wore the standard ANBU uniform, they even stood in the exact same way and spoke together.

"You're the one who stuck us with a former Jōnin as a sensei in the Academy and you're the reason our ruse was caught!"

"What?" I had absolutely no idea what they were talking about.

"They traded places every few days at the Academy. When you passed out students to the retirees, one of them grabbed her file," Roach pointed to the girl on the right, "And the man figured out their switches within the week, trained them up, and offered them a place in ANBU, since they were prodigies in information gathering and infiltration. It took them three tries each to pass the stamina portion of the ANBU initiation."

Roach barely avoided a punch to the head.

"Anyways, its two minutes before nine, barely enough time to get downstairs, come on, Uzumaki!" Roach grabbed my wrist and dragged me out before I could say anything more.

I may have tripped entering the girl's room, but this time I was careful and saw Roach's toe catch my ankle and responded accordingly. With a bit of chakra to prevent him from letting go of my sleeve, I twisted so that he was falling underneath me and just barely managed to keep myself on my feet. Everyone probably knew what happened, but the fact I pulled one over on someone who'd been an ANBU agent longer than I'd been training to be a shinobi was enough for me. That was one of the pros of being passive most of the time. Revenge was that much sweeter. He might not have actually tripped me earlier, but I wasn't going to be played the fool in front of what I guessed to be the ANBU General, if the way a masked Sakumo was kneeling in front of the masked man's desk alongside two others was any indication.

I dropped Roach on the ground and straightened. I certainly did not miss the weasel mask studying me intently and I absolutely did not forget to verify the chakra signature of the man behind it. I was beginning to seriously dislike the humor of whomever assigned the masks in ANBU. First, Sakumo wearing the mask Kakashi would one day wear, and secondly, Kagami, who was apparently the ANBU General and wearing the mask Itachi would one day wear. I had a new mission to find and ruin the day of whomever chose the masks in ANBU. Several times.

"I suppose this could be a lot worse," I commented as Sakumo glared at me.

Roach picked himself up, not even looking at the rest of the room and shoved me backwards. My back hit the door frame and I held up my hands in surrender before pointing at Kagami. Roach glanced at him and immediately dropped to one knee.

"General-sama," he murmured. His black bangs obscured his face from the rest of the room while he shot a reproachful glare at me.

"You're dismissed, Roach."

The boy left without a word. When the door closed, Kagami took off his mask.

"You are getting your ass kicked the second I'm able to do it," I promised Kagami.

"I'll be looking forward to it. Uzumaki, meet Dog, Rat, and Panda. All three have expressed an interest in becoming your mentor for the next few years. I believe you are already familiar with Dog and Rat. Panda was the individual responsible for guarding you and your sister during the nights before you made Genin, like how I was responsible during the day."

I nodded.

"You were saying, Rat?"

"While Dog has done an impressive job training the boy thus far, you have released his file and his abilities are sorely lacking in certain areas necessary for ANBU life. Also, by Dog's own admission, he lacks the discipline necessary to become a successful shinobi, much less successful in ANBU."

I opened my mouth to defend Sakumo, Kagami held up a hand to stop me.

"The holes in his training were an effort to make sure he never got into this life," Sakumo retorted. "And it is because of his temperament that he is on the short list for the Hokage seat."

"He doesn't know how to take orders!"

"I'm right here, you know." They ignored me.

"Panda, do you have anything to add?" Kagami asked.

"While Uzumaki-kun has worked alongside a number of individuals, he has little experience working under someone other than Hatake-san. At the very least, considering the nature of his assignment here, this is a valuable opportunity for him to learn to work under others and to take orders."

"The boy takes orders just fine when it is necessary or urgent, and you can see that he gets along just fine with most people. Unlike what most seem to assume, he doesn't go against orders unless he is certainly correct, and even then addresses the problem before breaking protocol. He's not an idiot who needs to be trained and corralled to keep him from causing problems." Sakumo defended.

"He's defied the Hokage more than once, all of us have seen it firsthand. If he doesn't respect our leader—"

"I'm right here and I don't appreciate the conversation." Everyone ignored me and Sakumo spoke over me.

"I think everyone here has at least one person they just can't get along with. In our cases, we can avoid those people, but Kichiro and the Hokage cannot avoid each other for long, simply because they are Jinchuuriki and Kage. Since Kichiro has not faced a court-martial for his insubordination, we can be sure that the Hokage does not see it as such. Yes, his actions were disrespectful and inappropriate, and he has admitted to it. You are all forgetting that he has more than made up for his flaws with his actions as a medic, his single-handed revival of his clan, resiliency against torture no one here, other than the General himself, has endured, as well as his capture of the Seven Swordsmen and sealing of the Hachibi. That is far more than any known kid has managed, and it nearly killed him on several occasions." I didn't remember being tortured, which was slightly unnerving, so I ignored it.

"He's impulsive and immature—"

"He is a _child_! If you want to blame me for that then you have to blame the sensei of Roach and the Twins, hell, I'm pretty sure we all remember what the Hokage's Genin team was like before they grew up. They almost destroyed the Hokage tower on three different occasions because of their immature squabbling and they were three years older than Kichiro at the last incident! Kichiro has had more responsibility piled on his shoulders than the three of us combined, yet prodigies stronger and smarter than him have self-destructed from less. Rat, eight years ago you had to _put down your own student_ to prevent a massacre of the Hyuuga clan. Panda, your previous student died because they _followed the wrong orders_. Let me remind you that both students were the epitome of a perfect shinobi. So far, Kichiro is younger, yet has managed to do more and survive more as a supposedly imperfect shinobi."

Even I knew Sakumo had crossed a line in bringing up former students, but he barreled on.

"I'm not pretending to be solely responsible, but you cannot deny that I've played a significant part in this boy's life since he arrived in Konoha. The Yamanaka medic who examined him upon his return from Iwa stated that beyond the effects of the events in Iwa, Kichiro is the healthiest, both mentally and physically, prodigy on record. I have made a conscious effort in that regard and I'll be damned if I let anyone ruin it again."

A long silence followed Sakumo's speech.

"Unless there are any other points to be made, I think I have come to my conclusion." We all waited for Kagami's verdict. "Uzumaki Kichiro will remain Dog's student. Rat, Panda, you are dismissed."

Rat and Panda reluctantly left. As the door closed behind them, Sakumo faced Kagami.

"First order of business is the three other Jinchuuriki in Konoha. One is too young to be considered as part of the fighting force and is in the care of Sarutobi Biwako. Sometime in the near future, you and your clan will be called upon to strengthen the seal if necessary. As for the Jinchuuriki from Iwa, they have declared that they will only answer to you. Your orders are to convince them to submit to a Yamanaka's techniques to ensure they mean no harm to Konoha. Dog will show you the way."

Sakumo laid a hand on my shoulder to guide me out. I followed a step behind him as he led me down several flights of stairs.

"Can't you shut up for ten seconds, please?" Someone complained faintly from below us.

"What else can I do other than talk?"

"If I recall correctly, there is a deck of cards by the door."

"So? We've had this conversation dozens of times, Michi, I don't like card games."

"Just shut up before I make you."

"Our dear ANBU guard said no fighting."

Sakumo gestured for me to lead the way around what I assumed to be the last corner. I took a deep breath and turned the corner striding towards the cell, Sakumo shadowing my steps.

"Uzumaki-sama!" One of the people inside the cell exclaimed and stood in front of the bars. It was the Yonbi Jinchuuriki. I flinched at the address.

"Thank you for bringing me back to Konoha." I said sincerely and stood as close to the bars of the cell as I could, searching inside for Michi. He sat in a corner shrouded with shadow. "I was never actually introduced," I addressed the teen awkwardly.

"Rōshi, Jinchuuriki of the Yonbi. Thanks to you, I'm proud of it now."

"It's nice to actually meet you, Rōshi-san, I'm Kichiro. Michi-san, it's nice to see you again as well."

Michi stood up and approached the bars of the cell. "I'm surprised your Hokage is allowing you into the same building as us. Why?"

"I was asked to persuade you to willingly submit to a Yamanaka's mind scan."

"The Yamanaka run your interrogation division, am I correct?"

"More or less."

"Get rid of the ANBU and we'll talk."

I glanced at Sakumo, who shook his head minutely. "Dog will stay, but the rest will leave," I answered firmly.

Michi hesitated but agreed. Rōshi followed his lead. I pulled on a tiny bit of the Kyuubi's chakra to verify there were no other chakra signatures in the room. There was no ANBU, but I could feel the Hokage leaning against the wall, just out of sight. They did specify no ANBU.

"I'm gonna get hell for that, so you better have a damn good reason."

"I wanted to see how much influence you actually have."

"Look, I was told you wanted to talk to me. Konoha wants to know if you're trustworthy. I'm stuck in the middle here so Konoha knows better than to cross me."

"Do you trust your Hokage?"

I crossed my arms. "None of your business. Next question."

"We were given the option to join Konoha's ranks. What is your opinion on what we should do?"

"Do you want my opinion, or the facts?"

"Is there a difference?"

"Yes."

"The facts then."

"If you're looking at the net benefit for yourselves, then you should do everything you can to get into Konoha's good graces. Of the hidden villages, they are the kindest to Jinchuuriki and you will most likely be happiest here, even if it takes you a decade or two to earn your freedom. You will be treated fairly here, but if you remain here, it will cause significant problems with the other nations, who will be convinced Konoha is hoarding the power of the tailed beasts and will respond accordingly. In other words, if you throw your lot in with Konoha, you will be responsible for the village's perpetual state of war."

They studied me. "That's a surprising analysis from someone your age," Rōshi commented.

"The fact that I'm here talking with you now shows that Konoha is willing to negotiate with you. Personally, I could care less considering I'm only here on orders and if you so much as cough, sniffle, or even twitch wrong, you threaten my family. They are the ones in line to be the next Jinchuuriki in the event of your death inside of Konoha. My advice is that you give Konoha what they want and leave as if you were never here. If you want to ally yourselves with a village, go to Kumo."

That was not something the two of them wanted to hear.

"Before you get all offended and claim you saved my life, let me remind you that I could have escaped Iwa at any time with the help of the Kyuubi. The surge of chakra required for such a feat would have wiped away any active Genjutsu, and the consequences would have been mitigated once I arrived home." An escape would have required me to release the Kyuubi, but no one needed to know that. "You threatened my life and your angry expressions right now threaten the people I care about. I am in no way the person you should be talking to. There are older, more experienced people in this village for a reason. If you want my good will, don't threaten me."

I turned on my heel and marched out. The Hokage raised an eyebrow at me as I passed but said nothing.

* * *

 _Author's note: This week, SOTT hit more than 700 followers! WOW! Thank you all so much!_


	42. Chapter 42

Sakumo caught up to me when I was halfway back to Kagami's office. "I think everyone can honestly say they were not expecting that little display."

"Good for them."

"The second breakfast is in a few minutes, are you hungry?"

"Yes, but I don't have any appetite right now."

"That's good enough for me."

"Um, did you just say 'second breakfast'?"

"Yes, I believe so."

"Exactly how many meals does ANBU serve each day?"

"I'm not sure, but there's something to eat every few hours."

"So you're saying you eat like _hobbits_."

"I'm not exactly sure what a hobbit is."

"A peaceful creature about a hundred and twenty centimeters tall, with big hairy feet, and lives in the _Shire_. They eat as often as they can. They're sometimes called _Halflings_."

Sakumo took off his mask and looked down at me and compared our heights. I came up to about his ribs, to my annoyance. "Basically, you."

I opened my mouth to shoot back a smart retort, but nothing came to mind. "I guess I walked into that one."

"Yes, you did. Either way, ANBU missions aren't issued in the mornings or evenings like the rest of the shinobi corps. Anyone can get a mission at any time while they're on duty so everyone has to be well-fed. Besides, ANBU training takes a lot out of you."

"Good to know."

"Yes, and while you eat, I'll be picking your first victims for tomorrow!"

"You are too happy about this."

"Trust me, once the hazing starts, you'll be enjoying it just as much."

"They're not going to try hazing someone who has the power to kick them off the active duty roster."

"Kichiro, about eighty percent of ANBU could probably be kicked off active duty for latent medical problems as is. The last twenty percent have medical friends who take care of them. They're not going to care, especially since you're not anywhere near as vindictive as the rest of the Tsunade-trained medics."

"Medical treatment is not torture."

"Probably not, but the paperwork is. Wait here for a second."

I turned to ask why, but Sakumo was already gone. Thirty seconds later, he appeared at the end of the hall with a folder of papers.

He stopped in front of me and handed me the stack. "ANBU medical files are generally pulled from the hospital when someone joins. Until now, they've been destroyed, which means you'll have to rebuild all their files from scratch. Don't give me that look, you'll have a template and they'll be filling out the majority of it. If you catch or even suspect anyone of lying, give their name to Kagami and he'll take care of it. In your hands is what they'll be filling out. If you have anything to add, there's a few pages in the back. I don't think I need to say this, but while they're filling this out, you'll have the Hokage's copy of their shinobi file to read, which includes mission reports. Medical history will be inserted into that file only. They are the most highly classified files in the village. You are expected to bring each ANBU to full health by whatever means necessary, Hokage's orders. Whatever procedure you deem necessary is what they have to agree to. I know the hospital allows shinobi to refuse medical treatment, but as ANBU, they don't have that option. If something is beyond your abilities, the Hokage will have them sent elsewhere for treatment. Try not to permanently kick anyone out. The mess hall is through that door there. Turn in your edits of the medical file to the General when you're finished. I have things to do. Have fun!" With that, Sakumo was gone.

I rolled my eyes as I strode into the mess hall.

"Uzumaki!" Someone shouted over the buzz of conversation. I glanced around and saw a teenager waving at me. "Roach is looking for you!"

"Thanks?" I responded as I piled food onto my tray from the buffet-style servery.

The group of four teenage guys around him waved me over. I was no stranger to lunchroom drama, however I certainly did not appreciate the attempted trips, two people trying to flip my lunch tray in my face and several other shenanigans on my way, all of them from the adults. I had never actually been the target of teasing in school, but I still managed to avoid embarrassment well enough. I noticed that they were careful not to put the file in my hand into the line of fire. Soiling paperwork was apparently a 'not cool' move, however, I wasn't above stepping on ankles.

"Dude, can you actually eat all that?" Someone asked as I sat down in the spot they had cleared for me.

"You try living on less than a meal a day for over a year and see how much you can eat afterwards," I grumbled back.

They laughed good-naturedly. "But seriously, kid, that plate looks like it weighs more than you."

"If you say so." I started to shovel the food into my mouth.

"So, we heard you're the medic. Is that true?"

"Yup," I answered between bites.

"Hatake said no interrogations," the person directly to my right reprimanded.

That started a round of smart-ass retorts that had everyone laughing.

"You're all idiots," I laughed when it degenerated to name-calling.

"Takes one to know one," the person across from me commented.

"Right you are."

"Do you always do that?"

"Do what?"

"Mix up the order of your words."

"I do?"

"Yes."

I shrugged. "I never noticed. By the way, normally people introduce themselves before initiating conversation. I suppose I'm not the only person who has problems with the correct order."

A chorus of 'ooh's followed that statement.

The person who called me over to begin with spoke first. "I'm Ginger." He was not a redhead, which confused me.

"On his first day here, someone swapped all his food for a bunch of ginger. The General caught him with it and gave him a lecture on moderation and made him eat it all. Of course, he didn't find out until later that the General had pranked him in the first place." The person to my right explained. "I'm Cat. Most people here have nicknames or go by their mask. Only the really old folk bother with real names."

The person to my left stole the last piece of broccoli off my plate, narrowly avoiding my attempt to stab him with my chopsticks, which were metal for some reason, just like the tray. "I'm Midget."

I raised an eyebrow at that. He was actually rather tall.

"Tallest ANBU recruit in living memory," he explained then pointed at the last three people who raised their hands when their name was called. "That's Iwazaru, Mizaru, and Kikazaru, the Evil Trio. Iwazaru decided to annoy Hatake a year and a half ago, which was really bad timing. Can't speak anymore. Mizaru is blind and always has been. Kikazaru has been deaf for almost three years now and never said how or why. They're one of our best units, of the younger generation, but our least versatile, considering it's difficult for them to work with anyone else, for obvious reasons."

"Hear no evil, see no evil, speak no evil," I concluded.

"Of course."

"I suppose you rectified the perceptions of more than a few bigoted enemies with a justified humiliation."

The three snorted then all-out howled in laughter.

"That wasn't supposed to be funny, but if you say so. I suppose you understand everyone just fine then, correct?"

They nodded.

"Well, I'm Kichiro, in case you didn't know already."

"Why'd you join ANBU?" Ginger asked, running his fingers through his hair. He reminded me of how I imagined James Potter, but with red hair instead of black.

I shoveled the last bite of food in my mouth. "I'm pretty sure its classified to hell and back," I answered after I swallowed.

"You idiot!" Cat snapped. "Hatake said no interrogations!"

"It's just a friendly question, besides, you're curious too! Does it have something to do with 'living on less than a meal a day for over a year'?"

"Yes."

"So that means you were probably a prisoner somewhere," Ginger concluded. "And I think that's all the information we need on the matter." I nodded once, silently daring anyone to refute it.

"Okay, fine," Midget snapped. "There's a notice on the bulletin board that everyone has a physical coming up. I'm assuming you're responsible for it."

"Yup."

"So what's on said physical?"

"Assume everything, because I haven't decided yet and basically have free reign."

They all grimaced.

"To quote Sakumo-sensei, I am 'expected to bring each ANBU to full health by whatever means necessary, Hokage's orders.' Sucks for everyone because I'm the one who has to do the majority of the paperwork."

"ANBU rarely has any paperwork, you know that, right?"

"Well, I'm under the impression that there's a change in policy since this lot keeps dying."

They all grimaced and the conversation stilled. I took the opportunity to open the medical file and start skimming. I recognized Tsunade's handwriting, any combat medic knew it since she was the leading expert for battle medics. While she was reasonably capable, she had little presence in pediatrics, geriatrics, veterinary, general care, or anything else. That was almost completely taken over by a trio of women: Sarutobi Biwako, the wife of the Hyuuga patriarch, and the current Inuzuka matriarch. One of the things that made me even more of an anomaly was that I could fill in practically anywhere. While all ninja medics were trained in combat medicine, they generally only took up one other specialty during peacetime. The fact that I had a working knowledge, at the very least, of every branch was probably one of the many reasons I was stuck in ANBU instead of reassigning a squad of medics with diverse talents.

Halfway through, I looked up. The so-called evil trio had left, but the others were peering curiously at my assigned reading. "You guys have been here long enough you can answer some questions, right?"

"Probably," Midget responded. "It depends on how classified the information you want is."

"Can everyone in ANBU administer emergency first aid to a teammate?"

"Of course," Ginger responded. "Civilian-level first aid is part of initiation training." I noticed they all winced at that, but I was much more interested in what he had to say next. "Most of the older agents can close skin and dull pain as well."

"Wait, are you telling me that some of the older ANBU can substitute as an emergency medic?"

"Of course! Everyone knows that the more medical treatment accessible in the field, the more likely the mission is to succeed."

"Okay, so how often does an injury not receive immediate basic treatment?"

"Well, it depends on the severity of the injury," Cat explained. "If you can still get back home at a reasonable speed, you're on your own with treatment."

I scowled. "And how often does everyone get injured?"

They exchanged glances. "Well, obviously, every mission has its bumps and bruises," Cat volunteered.

"No one advertises it when they get injured," Midget shifted uncomfortably.

"Fine. When was each of your last missions?"

"Got back yesterday," Ginger was the first to answer.

I looked at Cat next. "Five days ago and I'm leaving on another tonight," he answered.

Midget scowled, but answered without prompting. "Three days ago and I'm leaving tomorrow."

"So you're saying the rest time between missions is usually only a few days?"

"No, it's normally a week, but since we're younger and can bounce back faster, we have more frequent missions."

"I see. Have any of you been injured in the past six weeks?"

All three of them scowled at the question. "We're not exactly encouraged to tell anyone about injuries," Ginger admonished.

I scowled. "Fine." I turned back to the folder. Not even a minute later, the door to the cafeteria burst open.

"Uzumaki! Get your ass to the General's office yesterday!" A masked ANBU barked into the room.

"Why?" I asked, as I closed the file and tucked it under my arm. Cat took my tray.

"We don't question orders here, runt, now get on it!" He vanished from the doorway.

I rolled my eyes but hurried anyways. Less than a minute later, I arrived and knocked on the door. It opened automatically and Kagami, with the weasel mask in place, jabbed his finger towards one of the ANBU kneeling in front of him, who was covertly trying to hide the blood dripping onto the wood floor.

"Uzumaki, fix her." He turned to the others. "He's ANBU's new medic. Rabbit, go sit over there so he can stop you from making a mess of my office. Donkey, continue with your report, Uzumaki has clearance." Kagami pointed at a low, metal table shoved against the wall. There was a stack of files with a 'for Kichiro' note on top in Sakumo's handwriting. I tossed the file under my arm on top of the note as Rabbit took a seat on the empty end of the table.

I barely managed to keep my expression neutral as I noticed the basic treatment kit behind the files. "Where's the injury?" I asked in an undertone so I didn't disturb the report. The ANBU, which I was certain was female, indicated towards her side. I crouched, untied the armor and lifted it up so I could see the extent of the gash. It looked as if someone had managed to slide two blades underneath her armor and slice into both the front and back of her torso. I motioned for her to remove the armor, not paying the slightest attention to the debriefing.

The woman had wrapped the wounds with bandages, which were soaked with blood. I was ninety percent sure she had wrapped it herself, because anyone should have been able to do better for a comrade and she had four teammates. She pulled off her uniform shirt so she was wearing nothing more than a ratty undershirt and the stiff cloth most kunoichi used to bind their chests.

I unwound the bandages while she tried not to wince as it tugged at the poorly treated wound. The second I could see what I was working with, I started healing. Her ribs had done their job and stopped the blade from hitting any organs, even though they earned a number of gouges in the process. It took me a while to heal the bone. Partway through, Kagami barked my name.

"Uzumaki!" I ignored it, concentrating on my job until Kagami grabbed my shoulder without warning and spun me around. I moved to defend myself in alarm before I recognized him. "Obviously, you weren't listening. Did you have anything to add to the file you were given?"

"I didn't finish it, but Tsunade wrote it and she's twice as anal as I could ever be about shinobi health. If I have anything to add, I'll figure something out."

Kagami stood up and shoved four files towards the ANBU reporting then dropping the last one beside the woman I was treating. "Fill these out and report back to me. Uzumaki, stay, the rest of you, out."

They certainly didn't have to be told twice. When they were gone, Kagami took off his mask and returned to behind his desk to retrieve a towel and throw it at my face. I used it to wipe the woman's blood off my hands. When I finished, repacked the kit and folded the towel beside it, Kagami looked up from the seat behind his desk.

"While I appreciate your dedication to your job, you are in ANBU now and I am the General. That means I am your General and my word is law in this building. I don't mind a little disrespect or smart comments when no one is around, but I will not tolerate insubordination on any level, and from now on, you will be punished accordingly if it happens in front of anyone again. I tell you to jump, you ask how high. Am I clear?"

I gritted my teeth, glaring at his desk.

"As long as you are a part of ANBU, voluntary or not, you will abide by that maxim. Am I clear?"

"Crystal," I forced out.

"Thank you." He pointed towards the stack of files on the low table. "Those are the first few files of the people you will be treating. You don't have to read the entire file, but I would prefer it if you do. Take a left out of my office and the eighth door on you right will be your office. Tsunade-hime made a list of everything you might need. If you need special medicine or other fancy doctor things, I'll arrange for you to get them. There's two rooms, one for patients to wait, and one for you to give treatment and keep sensitive files in. It's almost eleven now, and when you finish with everyone, the rest of the night is yours. Someone will take you to training tomorrow and the day after. On the third day, you will report here at eight, take the next stack of files, and give checkups and treatments. For now, your schedule will continue as such, two days of training, one day of medic duty until you've completed initiation. Dismissed."

I scowled, snatched the stack of files off the table and left without a word.

When I jerked open the door, several people almost fell inside. I stared at them for a long time, confused, and they stared back in what I think was either awe or disbelief, which only confused me more.

"I am absolutely sure all of you maggots have a job to be doing right now!" Kagami snapped from his desk. They all fled and the hallway emptied faster than I could say 'what'. I still made sure to slam the door behind me.

By the time I reached the room I would be setting up shop in, my anger had cooled. The waiting room was painted a pale, pleasant green with the Konoha insignia on the right wall, drawn with bold, black paint. On the left wall was the ANBU insignia. A few chairs were scattered around the room and a small table with a deck of cards was set up in the center. As far as waiting rooms went, it was alright. I walked straight through the room into the next one. There was a metal examination table in the center of the room, a sink in the far right corner, and a desk in the far left, facing the door. The rest of the walls were covered with metal cupboards, all meticulously labelled in alphabetical order. I familiarized myself with where everything was, eventually finding my haori folded in one of the otherwise-empty desk drawers. I shrugged and put it on, figuring I might as well be recognizable. It would look a little weird with the ANBU uniform if the time came, but I went with it.

I had just sat down on top of the desk, leaving the doors wide open, when someone knocked on the door frame.

I looked up at the annoyed man in front of me. The hair around his temples was beginning to turn from dull black to grey. He wore the standard ANBU uniform, like everyone else in the place, and from the file in his hand, I guessed he was here on Kagami's orders. "ANBU Panther reporting to initiate Uzumaki for routine medical treatment." That confirmed my guess. I flipped open the cover of the first file and, sure enough, saw a sketch of him, albeit about a decade younger, glaring back at me. Of the five files I had been given, his was definitely the thickest and I didn't exactly want to read it.

"Nice to meet you, Senju-san, I'm Uzumaki Kichiro." He flinched at his name and stepped forward to hand me the file in his hand, closing the door behind him. "Thank you. Have you been injured in the past year?"

He hesitated before answering with an affirmative. He stood stiffly beside my desk while I read.

"You can sit down if you want," I pointed towards the chair behind the desk, wheeling it out from behind it. He didn't sit.

According to his file, he had never been seen by a medic nin. From his age, it was somewhat believable.

"Do you have any current injuries?"

"Nothing beyond standard scrapes and bruises."

"Do you have any pain or difficulty associated with movement?"

"I do not."

"Any abnormal fatigue, loss of memory, or delayed reactions?"

"I do not."

"Have you had any decline in sensory perception?"

"I have not."

"Have you ever had a diagnostics jutsu performed on you?"

"I have not."

I jumped off the desk. "Please sit down wherever, Senju-san." I bounced over to the sink to wash my hands. There wasn't any soap, so I heated the water flowing across my hands with chakra until it nearly boiled on contact, a unique application for a basic fire manipulation exercise. The hot water didn't burn me since it was heated by my chakra. He slid the chair over against the wall and sat down with his back to it. "The diagnostic jutsu feels similar to a Genjutsu, but the chakra itself feels much different, at least that's what I'm told. To me, they have nothing in common."

He eyed me skeptically.

"Is there anything I can do to make you more comfortable?"

"Just do your job."

"I am. Only Tsunade and her disciples are mean or frightening when administering treatment. No one should fear their doctors. Besides, I prefer to keep my head where it is, think you very much. Medical Ninjutsu takes time to accustom yourself to, and the first time is nerve wracking, which means I'm the one in the line of fire when dealing with high-level ninja"

"You don't seem to approve of Tsunade-hime's methods."

"No, I do not, and I'm perfectly aware of the fact you are stalling."

"But you still have the same blunt nature as her."

"It's one thing to be blunt and another to be cruel. Would you like to lie down or may I begin?"

"You're extremely young to be a full-fledged doctor, even by shinobi standards."

"Yeah, well, age is a hallmark of experience, not skill," I scowled.

"Experience has a lot to do with skill," he retorted.

"If you wanted to know if I'm qualified, you could have just asked. I try to avoid arguing with patients. I am not naïve enough to think you didn't look up my stats before you came. The last time I checked, which was just after my first mission, my patients had a ninety-seven percent survival rate and I have a ninety-six percent success rate. Less than one percent of my failures have occurred within the village where I have had adequate supplies. I won't make a mistake here, Senju-san. You have my word."

"I haven't been addressed by my personal name in over a decade."

"I do have a job to do. While it is much more flexible than standard assignments, it is still a job."

He nodded once and closed his eyes. "Go ahead." When I touched his forehead, he flinched, and stiffened when I began the diagnostics, but in a few seconds, I finished and returned to my desk to write down the results. "And?" He prompted.

I responded while writing. "There's a lot of impressive scarring to your soft tissues. There is scar tissue impairing the movement of most of your joints. The fact that it's not causing you any pain is odd, but I assume you're just accustomed to it. I can dissolve the majority of it if you would like. It's simple, but time consuming. On another note, you have broken several bones and they didn't heal properly. I would like to fix that. Finally, I'm not entirely sure how you can walk, much less be a shinobi. Several ligaments in your lower leg have been severed and that really needs to be fixed."

"I see."

"Are you ready to begin?"

"Is it urgent?"

"Well, obviously you're fine right now, but how long do you think you can last on the field when you're not at your top speed? From what I can tell, the original injury to your leg only damaged one ligament, but continued use snapped it and several others as well. You should not be able to walk right now, or at least not without a severe limp. Besides, it would save us all a bunch of time if you got treatment now instead of later."

He eyed me carefully. "Do I have a choice?"

"I'm under the impression that you do not, but it's not like I'm capable of forcing you to stay. I will be letting Kaga—the General know if you refuse treatment. It'll be between you and him then." I was beginning to feel a little uncomfortable under his gaze.

"Very well. I will remain and let you do your job."

"Okay, then I'll start by fixing the damaged ligaments." I turned around, walking over to the opposite wall and pulled down a set of hospital clothes to toss on the table without looking. "Put those on, working through clothing is more trouble than its worth. Dump your stuff in the chair."

While I waited for him to do that, I climbed the cabinets to reach the very top shelf where the scalpels were kept. While it was possible for me to perform surgery without any supplies, I preferred to see what I was doing and I had plenty of chakra to fix the patient up like new afterwards.

"You're going to fall," he warned me.

"Just because I'm not a super powerful veteran like you doesn't mean I can't climb a few shelves," I retorted as I tried to decide which blade to use. "Besides, you still need to change." I glanced over my shoulder and the motion dislodged the shelf my feet were on. "Shit!" I yelped and jumped backwards, landing with my scalpel in hand, thankfully, nothing fell out after me. "Who the hell doesn't nail down the stupid shelves?"

"I warned you."

"You did, thanks. You still haven't changed yet." I mustered my dignity and stalked back to my desk to scribble down the procedure. By the time I finished, there was a pile of weapons on the chair just inside my peripheral and the man was standing behind me, reading over my shoulder. It was a bit unnerving, but I tolerated it. Finally, I turned to face him. "I would prefer to work with you unconscious. If you aren't comfortable with that, it's not necessary, however, there is a condition."

"The condition?"

"No interrupting my work. Questions are fine, but no stopping me or attacking me or running away or I knock you unconscious. It'll take longer that way because I'll have to deaden the nerves then reawaken them, otherwise you'll be in pain the whole time and that's wholly unnecessary. What'll it be?" I always gave shinobi a choice when it came to minor surgery since it never took long. Even so, I always felt awkward, I was asking them if they wanted to watch me cut them open. I found it ironic that of the four shinobi who chose to watch their own surgery, all four of them ended up puking. I had a good laugh about it afterwards, since all of them had received worse injuries in the field and it hadn't fazed them at all.

The Senju thought about it for a few minutes before he chose to allow me to knock him unconscious. Fixing the ligaments in his leg took me twenty minutes. Not for the first time, I praised medical ninjutsu. It made it ten times easier to find the damaged tendons and ligaments and I didn't have to sew them together; a minute of healing chakra repaired what could only be several years of damage. I spent another ten minutes healing the damage to the muscles and bones before closing the incision. Given most of the man's injuries were over a decade old, he was very obviously good at his job. Unfortunately, that made my job harder.

The scar tissue affecting his movement was that much harder to remove from his joints. Repeated sprains and dislocations were, in my opinion, more annoying for a medic than the person injured. A fresh sprain literally took seconds to heal. It only took a minute to fix the scarring from sprain that just finished healing naturally. Year-old sprains weren't much worse. The problems with fixing the damage started when the scar tissue set into the injured joint and the patient started compensating for the change. Dissolving scar tissue was just plain annoying and time consuming. I spent the next thirty minutes on that project.

Bone was a hell of a lot simpler. I didn't actually need to re-break and fix the healing of nine ribs, eight fingers, two toes, and a left ulna that had broken in four places, but I sincerely doubted I would ever see the man again and I didn't need to be a medic to see that his broken fingers hindered his movement. I finished in twenty minutes.

I woke the man up, ready to leap back if he reacted violently. Fortunately, he didn't do anything but grab my wrist before he recognized me.

"Stand up and walk around a little," I ordered, pulling out of his grip. He nodded and stood up, shaking out his limbs. "Any pain?"

"None at all. What did you do?"

I snorted. "I suppose you never realized how much pain you were in in the first place. You might be a little stiff for a while. Take it easy for about five or six hours so the healing has a chance to make sure it will stay healed. When I say take it easy, I mean sit and read a book or take a nap and if you absolutely feel the need to go somewhere, take it at lazy civilian speed. After dinner, start training, and don't forget. You're going to move slightly differently now and you need to get used to it before your next mission. If you have any questions or find yourself injured again, come find me. You're free to go." He was already gone, already ignoring my order to walk.

* * *

 _Author's note: I hope all my fellow Americans had a Happy Thanksgiving! I'm thankful for each and every reader and I'm especially thankful for those who think this story is good enough to merit spending a few extra moments to review!_


	43. Chapter 43

I wasn't overly surprised when the next person in line was Roach. I was surprised to discover his real name was Umino Ikkaku. I couldn't be absolutely sure, but I was almost certain he would end up being Iruka's father.

"I suppose I can't just call you 'Uzumaki' here, right?" He shrugged as he put his elbows down on the desk in front of me. I leaned back in my chair behind the desk so he couldn't read the Hokage's file on him that I was skimming.

"That's fine, but I prefer 'Kichiro', since you're asking. Or, you can call me 'Chiro-sensei' like the kids in the hospital do." I snapped the file closed and switched to the file he handed to me. "Close the door."

"I gotta call you that now, don't I?"

"Yup!" I glanced up from speed-reading his file to smirk. "Do you have any current injuries?"

Roach scowled. "Iwa bastard stabbed me in the arm last week, but nothing serious."

"Do you have any pain or difficulty associated with movement?"

"I'm thirteen, not thirty-one."

"Just answer the question."

"Nothing worth mentioning."

"That means there's something, what is it?"

Roach shrugged. "Broke my wrist last month, hasn't been the same since, but it works just fine."

"If you were six, that would be worth noting, but unless you've seen a medic-nin, which in your file it says you haven't done in over a year, the bone isn't even healed yet and the movement is stopping it from doing so. I'll fix it later."

"How was I supposed to know about that?" He muttered sarcastically under his breath.

"By seeing a medic like you're supposed to," I retorted. "Any abnormal fatigue, loss of memory, or delayed reactions?"

"What is up with these questions?"

"You're making this take longer than it should, just answer. They're standard questions for shinobi who haven't had access to proper medical care for an extended period of time."

"Fine, there's nothing abnormal. Happy?"

"Have you had any decline in sensory perception?"

"No."

"Thank you. Go sit down on the table." I closed the file and went to wash my hands in the sink.

Roach just scowled and muttered all the way on to the examination table.

"Do you remember the last time you've had a diagnostics jutsu performed on you?"

"Yeah, what about it?"

"I'm going to make sure you didn't lie in your medical file. If you did, now's your last chance to come clean." He just scowled and I pressed my hand against his forehead.

"Paranoid bastard," he grumbled at me.

I rolled my eyes and finished the jutsu. "Rightly so. You have three cracked ribs, someone stuck five kunai in your right thigh, your collarbone is broken, and you stubbed your toe sometime in the last hour and I know you can feel it throbbing still, on top of the stab wound in your arm and the broken wrist. Those are just the injuries from the past two months. Now tell me, did you honestly think you could get away with lying to my face?"

"The diagnostics jutsu only picks up what you're looking for!" Roach protested.

"That's just the version that's taught to non-medics. Actual medics can perform the full jutsu and process all the information at once."

"Bastard."

"No, I'm just good at what I do." I walked past him and pulled out the smallest hospital shorts from the cupboard and tossed them on the table beside Roach, then stuffed the files on my desk inside of the drawers. "Put the shorts on and put your stuff on the desk."

"What's wrong with my clothes?"

"First, they're armored and I never figured out how to heal efficiently through clothing. Second, I know you're armed past your teeth and unless you plan on killing me by accident, your weapons can stay out of your reach for the time being. It's those shorts or your underwear, take your pick." He chose the shorts while I pulled out what I needed to clean the wounds and set them on the table.

Among ninja, split personalities were not uncommon, especially in young ninja. No matter where they're from, a kid or teenager couldn't handle the stress of multiple high-level shinobi missions. It was one of the reasons kids under fifteen were rare in the ANBU and Jōnin ranks. They tended to snap under the pressure if they couldn't figure out how to handle it. In the entire village, there were five kids under fifteen who held a Jōnin rank. Four of them were fourteen and the fifth was twelve. All five of them reported to me for medical treatment up until the point I made Genin, and while I was on my first mission, three of them refused to see any other medic. The other two died in battle. All five of them had split personalities. I wasn't sure why, but I was sure of it. I wished I had put a bit more effort into high school psychology class, but one of the tidbits I remembered was that split personalities sometimes formed to handle stressful situations and when the stressor was taken away, the original personality returned. The five child-Jōnin created their split personality to handle shinobi life. When I isolated them for treatment, the original personality returned and they turned back into the kids they actually were. I didn't think it was possible to have so many identical cases and didn't like to think about it.

Considering Roach lived and breathed ANBU, I assumed he had found some healthy way to cope. When I tossed a sheet over his ANBU gear and uniform, I found myself proved wrong. Just like the other five, his personality had split as well. Before, he had obviously been functioning through quite a bit of pain. After I removed the ANBU stimulus, the cocky arrogance and easy confidence evaporated, and he curled in on himself.

" _It hurts,_ " he whined in English as I laid him on his back.

" _I'm going to heal you, okay, but you need to cooperate with me, can you do that?_ " I responded in English.

He nodded. " _Who are you?_ "

" _I'm Dr. Chiro, how about you tell me your name?_ "

" _Ikkaku Umino._ " Well, apparently his split operated in English, while Roach operated in Japanese. " _You're really young to be a doctor._ "

" _I am._ "

" _Where am I?_ "

" _You're in my office. What's the last thing you remember?_ "

" _Daddy is dead, isn't he?_ "

According to the file, his father died over a year before. " _Yes, your father's dead. Can you tell me what today's date is?_ "

Ikkaku rattled off the date of his father's death.

" _Do you know what a Dissociative Identity Disorder is?_ " I asked as I finished cleaning the topmost stab wound on his thigh. It had begun to fester, causing even more problems. Most combat medics could heal without supplies, cleaning the wound with chakra only, but healing like that was chakra-intensive and I never bothered unless I had no other choice.

Ikkaku shook his head.

" _It's more commonly known as Multiple Personality Disorder._ "

Ikkaku nodded. " _I know what that is._ " I healed over the first of the stab wounds before continuing.

" _You have it. Your split goes by the name of Roach and he's an ANBU agent._ "

Ikkaku's bottom lip trembled, but it might have been because I had started cleaning the next wound.

" _It's alright, from what I've seen, your situation is normal._ " I gave him today's date. " _That's why you're missing so much time._ "

" _You know English; how do you know English?_ "

" _That's a story for another time._ " I finished cleaning the wounds on his thigh during the pause and moved on to the one on his arm, which was clearly infected.

" _Who knows?_ "

" _Who knows what?_ "

" _About the split._ "

" _I don't know, I just found out._ "

" _How old is the split?_ "

" _I don't know, Ikkaku-san. I just figured it out because your personality just flipped on me and I've seen it several times before on other people. I don't know anything more._ "

" _Are you going to tell anyone?_ "

" _I'm going to make note of it in your file, but only the Hokage and ANBU General will have access to it. You're free to tell anyone you wish. The Hokage will will most likely inform those who need to be aware of it, but no one will hear anything from me._ " I shifted to healing the cracked ribs. A half hour later, I finished healing the menagerie of old injuries and broken bones. " _I'm not a psychologist, so I don't know how to help. But if you ever want to talk, come find me, okay?_ "

He nodded and sat up.

" _You're free to go, but as soon as I uncover your ANBU things, it might trigger Roach's return. I'm pretty sure ANBU is his trigger._ "

" _I'm in ANBU headquarters right now, aren't I?_ "

" _Yes, you are._ "

" _That makes sense. Thank you, Dr. Chiro._ "

" _You're welcome._ " I pulled the sheet off Roach's uniform, and sure enough, the cocky boy returned.

"Yo! What's with the long face?" He asked, hopping off the examination table. "That was the fastest trip to a medic I've ever had!"

"That's because you weren't here for most of it. Your other personality was."

"Ikkaku? He's an idiot."

"No, he's not. Next time you're injured, even if you think it's minor, see me or another medic-nin and tell them I sent you. Now get out, I have a job to do."

"Hey, when you're done, I want to show you something."

"Whatever." Roach pulled on his shoe and skipped out, only to be replaced by the woman I had been treating earlier in Kagami's office, her mask attached to her hip.

"You can sit down anywhere; I have a bunch of stuff to write down for Roach before I can help you. Sorry." I fell heavily into my desk chair and started scribbling the edit into Roach's file for the Hokage and the medical file. She stood patiently in the doorway, chatting with someone outside while I finished and pulled out her file to skim through.

"You really ought to read the entire file, Uzumaki-san." She smirked, closing the door behind her.

"Well, I wasn't ordered to and most of the information is useless to me anyways."

She rolled her eyes and dropped her file in front of me. "I spent several weeks in Tsunade-hime's medic program, under an alias of course. If I remember correctly, you were the upstart who asked why I was wearing a Henge inside of the village."

I shrugged. "You were the only one with higher grades than me, so I paid attention. You didn't have to leave after that, you know, I wasn't going to push the point."

"I only stayed for as long as I did because I was interested in you."

"Frankly, I find that creepy, I was barely eight at the time." I opened the file she filled out. "DO I still need to be worried about my virginity?"

"Hell no, not like that, you arrogant little pervert!"

I glanced up with a smirk. "You walked into that one."

She scowled. "Anyways, what I meant was that you could have done anything, especially with Hatake as your sensei. Why a medic?"

"That's the big question, what everyone wants to know, isn't it?" I rolled my eyes.

"Rumor says you're a pacifist, but rumor also says you're the ultimate mercenary spy and here because the Hokage hired you because he suspects a nest of traitors somewhere in the shinobi ranks and medics have the most access."

"Both are wrong."

"So what's the real reason?"

I leaned back and tapped the Kyuubi's seal on my stomach. "Jinchuuriki are much more powerful than you think. In fact, no one actually knows how powerful a Jinchuuriki is, because no one has been able to push a reasonably well-trained one far enough to find their limit yet. Everyone knows that. They know the Bijū inside of them aren't the kindest or most stable of individuals. I suppose I could become the most powerful shinobi in the village and earn respect and acknowledgement that way, but I don't care enough about whether or not anyone respects me, and I don't need anyone's acknowledgement. I just don't want to be feared. Someone who makes it their life's work to fix people instead of break them isn't very scary, right?"

"That's the biggest pile of bullshit I've ever heard come out of your mouth, and I was there when you convinced most of the medic class that the stars were actually suns that are a very long way away."

"Come on! That is true! And no one believes my real reason so I'm trying to find one someone will actually believe."

"You were a medic long before the Kyuubi was sealed inside of you."

"I knew I was going to become a Jinchuuriki the moment I stepped foot in Konoha, it was only a matter of time."

"So what's the real reason?"

"I don't want to kill."

She snorted. "That's even less believable."

"But look at me, am I lying?"

She studied me for a long time. "No, you're not."

"Being a medic is as far as I can get from killing. That's why I'm here instead of on the front lines tearing a hole in the enemy."

"How is making other people better able to kill more any better?"

"It's not. If I could, I would walk out of this village and hide myself in a cave somewhere I'd never have to be a part of this society again, but I can't, so I'm here saving the lives I can and mourning for those I can't."

"That's a lot more mature and coherent than someone your age should be capable of."

"I spent most of my time in pediatrics while I was working in the hospital. I could have switched to a different ward if I wanted to, but I didn't, I think you can see why. It doesn't really matter now, but I have a job to do here, Gekkō-san."

"I go by Rabbit while in ANBU."

"I don't treat masks, I treat people. In here, you're Gekkō Arisu."

She nodded and I started with the standard questions. After I finished the diagnostics jutsu and healed her sprained wrist at her request, she left. Of the stack Kagami gave me, there were eight people left.

The next three people who came through had injuries similar to Roach. The next two had been Jōnin before joining ANBU, so they were in the habit of routine medical care and only had minor injuries, which didn't take long to heal. The next person was in a similar situation as the Senju I saw first, but was obviously not as good at his job, considering he had a few fresh injuries and considerably more scars.

The last person surprised me. It was Rat. His real name was Uchiha Yori, the identical twin brother of the Uchiha clan head.

"I would never have guessed you were an Uchiha," I said as I finished up the file from the patient before him and stuffed it inside of his official file, which went into the completed patients drawer. I scanned the Uchiha's file before switching to the medical file he handed me. I decided on ignoring the fact he had tried to usurp Sakumo as sensei and just treat him like I did all the others who came through.

"Do you have any current injuries?"

"None."

"Do you have any pain or difficulty associated with movement?"

"I do not."

"Any abnormal fatigue, loss of memory, or delayed reactions?"

"I'm not that old."

"Why does everyone think that question is a poke at age? It's meant to determine if you got hit on the head too hard!"

"I haven't been hit on the head in years."

"Good to know. Have you had any decline in sensory perception?"

"I assume that question is meant to accomplish the same thing, correct?"

"No, that question is meant to identify any specific problems that develop from things like breathing in smoke bombs or having a flash tag explode in your face."

"There's been no change in my senses."

"I'll just do a quick diagnostics jutsu and if it's all good, you'll be free to go."

Thankfully, he sat down without protest and I pressed my hand against his forehead immediately noting that he had the Mangekyō Sharingan. I made a mental note to add that to his file. I was about to pull away and tell him he was free to go when something strange caught my attention. There was something odd with his blood.

"Is everything alright?" He asked when I stepped back with a frown.

"I don't know. I think so. Do you bleed abnormally heavily or slowly?"

"What does that have to do with anything?"

"I'm not sure. Do you find yourself lightheaded occasionally, or feel like you have a hard time catching your breath?"

"Why are you asking?"

I flipped open his file from the Hokage and skimmed it more carefully. "There's an anomaly in your blood. From what I can tell, it's genetic. Do you have any children?"

"No."

"It's strange. You're thirty-nine, correct?"

"Yes."

"I can only assume its meaningless, but can I try a more intensive diagnostics jutsu to be sure?"

"That's fine."

I sped through the hand seals of an advanced diagnostics jutsu and laid the palm of my hand over his heart and closed my eyes. "I'm fairly certain it's just a genetic anomaly. If it does something, I can't figure it out. You've gone this long with it, so I assume it's fine, but if you have any children, bring them to me to figure out whether it was passed on."

"I have an identical twin. Does that mean he has this anomaly as well?"

"I don't know. It depends on whether the condition was prenatal, perinatal, or postnatal. Either way, I can't do jack shit about it and there's no adverse symptoms. Just make sure you tell me if you start bleeding funny or weird things happen with your breathing. I'm going to finish my work then get some sleep because damn, you people have so many latent problems I'm exhausted just thinking about it. Get out."

"Boy—" He snapped his jaw closed as I raised an eyebrow at him. "I hope Hatake beats you to dust."

"Don't worry, he will."

He turned on his heel and marched out, only to run into the Hokage.

"Sandaime-sama," Rat automatically dropped to one knee.

"You're dismissed." As soon as Rat left, the Hokage closed the door behind him. I pretended he wasn't there as I finished the paperwork and pulled out the files with the medical additions, dropping them heavily on the desk and pushing them towards him. "How was your first day?" He asked neutrally.

"You're not here for a social visit, so cut the nonsense," I retorted sharply.

The Sandaime nodded and satdown on the empty corner of my desk. Paper crinkled in his pocket. "I want to ask you some things."

* * *

 _Author's note: I have posted a collection of sidestories from the perspective of other characters in this story. Go check them out if you haven't already!_


	44. Chapter 44

I stared at the Hokage for a long time in disbelief.

"I want to see what your head looks like with an ax in it. I guess neither one of us gets what we want," I retorted belatedly. The Hokage was not amused, for obvious reasons. I stood and stripped off my haori, tossing it over the chair. I started to leave but the Hokage grabbed my arm. I jerked myself free, or at least tried to. His grip was stronger than anything I could break out of without any elaborate maneuvers. "Leave me alone," I snapped.

"Hear me out." When he was certain I wasn't going to bolt, he slowly released me.

I crossed my arms and faced the door. "Is that an order?" I probably didn't need to load that statement with snark, but it was too late to take it back.

"No, it's a request," he replied, his voice surprisingly even.

"You have absolutely no reason whatsoever to be here, aside from micromanaging the shit out of my life. Is Sakumo not a good enough watchdog for you? You got a few thousand others willing and able to do the job. I'm certain you would prefer to deal with the middleman, and I certainly would as well. Get out."

"Your life is mine, boy, you would do well to remember that."

I spun towards him, kunai in hand, and pressed the tip over his heart an instant before he caught my wrist and scratched my eyeball with his own kunai. I made a point not to blink until he pulled the blade away. The seals on my hands and forehead burned in warning as I leaned forward. A drop of blood slowly stained the front of his white Hokage robes. "You're wrong, you're so very wrong."

Faster than I could see, the Hokage disarmed me and slammed my back into the ground, one hand around my neck. I could barely pull in miniscule gulps of air. He also managed to drag me into a different room lit by security seals.

"Do it," I dared him, wasting what little breath I had. He dug his knee into my solar plexus as I grabbed his wrist with both hands.

"I want to," he snarled back, loosening his grip so I could wheeze in enough air to speak.

"Then why don't you?"

"You're scared," he observed.

"Oh, really? What a surprise, considering I have a Kage out to get me!" I had to get the sarcasm under control.

"No, you're scared of something else."

"Sure, whatever helps you sleep at night."

"You said 'a Kage' not 'Hokage'. You've always been willing to talk, why not now?"

I snapped my teeth together.

"You shut down when I showed you those pictures, why?"

He was reinforcing his arm with chakra so I couldn't break it, but I never planned to. I tightened my grip and twisted the skin of his arm in opposite directions. The Indian burn was petty and childish, but I didn't care; the satisfaction of seeing him flinch back was worth it. Getting crucified for it was much less satisfying.

He literally put a kunai through the heels of both my hands and pinned them to the ground on either side of my head.

"There's something you know that you desperately want to hide from me. I got close to it when you brought back the Rinnegan boy and it has something to do with the images the Yamanaka found in your head."

He was much, much closer than I was comfortable with. Right on the mark, in fact. "So what are you going to do? Torture me for it?"

"No. I cannot afford to waste a potential resource such as yourself."

I could do nothing but wait for the other shoe to drop. Slowly, the Sandaime pulled the kunai out of my hands then stood beside me as I sat up to heal them. Only then I realized exactly how much I relied on my hands. Sure, I made an effort to avoid relying on them too much, but it was still a problem. I could barely heal with both hands injured. Frustrated, I clenched my fists and pressed them against my knees, sitting cross-legged.

"There isn't a threat I can make to you that you will heed, no, I can't threaten you."

I snorted. "So you expect me to tell you because I want to? You should have asked before you put the Shitagau on me. I might have considered it then."

"I can't threaten you," he corrected, "But I can threaten your sister. I can threaten the little Nagato-chan."

"They haven't done anything."

"No, they haven't, but you have."

"You rat-faced, traitorous asshole!" I shot to my feet and continued on that thread for a while and he just stared at me impassively. I barely noticed or cared when the insults switched to English. All I wanted was to be back in my old body where I could tower over him, or at least have the skill to thrash him within an inch of his life.

When the rant got a bit ridiculous in length, he interrupted. "You've given everything, you nearly gave your life, to make sure your sister remained happy and reasonably safe. You've extended that protection to Nagato-chan as well. I've been monitoring both of them very carefully. Both show tremendous potential, but unlike Minato-kun, neither of them are especially driven. Both of them train because they want their beloved nii-san to be proud of them. That resolve stands on shaky ground when you're never there to visit, when you never really care how much they've grown as shinobi, if you're nothing more than a disgraced _traitor_."

I flinched as the implications of the Hokage's threat began to sink in. Kushina would never believe I was a traitor. For all her impulsive, devil-may-care attitude, she was a follower, not a leader and Nagato was too young and impressionable, he would follow her lead in attempting to defend me. Minato was as loyal as they came, but his loyalty wasn't blind. He didn't approve of my antagonistic attitude towards the Hokage and had said as much. If the Hokage declared me a traitor, Kushina would lose her best friend. The rest of the clan would lose the power of their name, most likely the good will of the village as well. Everything I had done for them would be for naught, the foundation of their security would be ruined.

"I don't need your loyalty anymore. I just need your obedience."

I pressed my back to the nearest wall, trying to find a way I could mitigate the implications and deny the Hokage what he wanted. "Why now? You could have made this threat at any time since I made Genin. Why now? You've yielded to me several times before, you said you trusted Sakumo when he never squealed on me. Why now? There's no way any of it could possibly be relevant yet."

"Yet? You're no seer, boy."

I scrambled for a way to change the subject. "When I was in Iwa, I had a lot of time to myself. I may not be all that great at Fūinjutsu, but that gave me plenty of time to look at the Kyuubi's seal. I could break it without much effort and you wouldn't be able to stop me."

"The Kyuubi can be stopped."

"At the cost of your life, or your student's. I sincerely doubt anyone else has enough mastery of the Shiki Fūjin, and none of my seals are strong enough to contain the Kyuubi, the one I used on the Hachibi is barely strong enough for the eight tails."

"Do it then, remember, you'll still be labelled a traitor."

"No, I won't. You would have nothing to gain from it and you would only ruin your ninja in the process. With me out of the picture, they're safe." Without warning, I jerked my shirt up to reveal the seal on my stomach while smearing the blood from the wounds on my hand over my thumb. Too late, the Hokage realized I wasn't bluffing. The shocked and terrified expression on his face was completely worth it.

Before I could finish, someone's hand struck the center of my back and an overcharged version of Sakumo's lightning paralysis jutsu tore through my body. If it wasn't for the fact that the Kyuubi was straining as hard as he could against the seal, the initial electrocution would have killed me. Luckily it wasn't fatal, but the second effect of the jutsu would last a while.

"With all due respect Hokage-sama, I told you we should have foregone the stupid traditional test," Sakumo growled when I collapsed to the ground, every single muscle in my body, excepting those absolutely vital to my continued existence, forcibly relaxed, completely paralyzed.

"Yes, you reserved the right to say so, but his loyalty needed to be determined."

"We all knew he would fail. He didn't even figure out it was a test!"

"Hatake-san, I think our time would be better spent determining what to do now that he actually failed."

"You can't kill him."

"I have very good reason to."

"I checked, he never signed any legally binding agreement that pledged his allegiance to you or this village. Hell, the only physical connection he has to this village is through his clan, who is only a part of this village because of an agreement the Shodai made almost fifty years ago, which states that Konoha and the Uzumaki clan would never take up arms against each other and promised assistance in times of distress. If you kill him, it's murder and breaks that treaty!"

"He is a shinobi of Konoha—"

"Did you ever look at the agreement he signed when he became a Genin? He's a shinobi of Uzushiogakure and I believe his sister is as well. While Konoha was scrambling at the destruction of its closest ally, he was hiding in the background making sure Uzu never died. He played the system perfectly. He somehow dug up a transfer of services agreement, which he signed in place of their shinobi contract with Konoha, I believe his sister signed a similar document. Both of them answer to you in practice, but on paper, they're ultimately loyal to Uzu. At best, you could charge him with operating under false pretenses, and that's not something he can be executed for."

"When did you find this out? How did he manage it? Why did he never say anything?"

"I discovered this when you let me read through his official file an hour ago. Uzushiogakure used the exact same documents as Konoha, the only differences are the names. From the dates on the documents, they all happened while the village was in various states of emergency."

"What about his sister? Damn it all! I want that whole clan in my office immediately so I can figure out how far this goes. Wake him up and bring him as well."

A door slammed closed. Kagami, who I didn't even realize was in the room, started laughing. "What have you been teaching your kid, Sakumo? No one, I mean no one, has beaten him at the paperwork game since the Nidaime, but he helped create the system to begin with!"

"I would never have allowed this," Sakumo snapped, beyond angry with me. He zapped me with lightning to cancel the jutsu and I could somewhat move again. "Get up, you ass," he snarled at me, kicking my side just hard enough to be painful.

"Damn that jutsu to _Tartarus_." That was the wrong thing to say. Sakumo grabbed the front of my vest and slammed me against the wall so my feet dangled at least a foot off the ground, probably more, his face less than an inch away from my own.

"If you ever attempt, or even threaten, to release the Kyuubi again or put me in a position where I am forced to defend your _life_ against a _comrade_ because _you_ screwed up, this apprenticeship is over. Am I clear?"

I swallowed. " _Yessir_."

He turned on his heel and marched out without another word. "You just scared him, Kichiro—" Kagami tried to reassure me, but I knocked his hand away from my shoulder before turning my back to him and pulling out the bandages that normally covered the palms of my hands to stem the bleeding. My hands were always bare when healing.

"No, I screwed up." I followed Sakumo out, struggling to keep up as he practically flew through the village. The second I landed in front of the Hokage tower, he vanished. I was about to step inside when a white-faced Kushina arrived, Nagato clinging tightly to her hand. I paused, waiting for them. As soon as Nagato caught sight of me, he dashed forward. I picked him up when he reached me.

"I got to him first," Kushina mumbled. "You said no one would figure it out."

"I'm sorry, Kushina. I messed up."

"It's okay. We're going to be okay, right? You said we could get into trouble, but it was my idea, not yours. That ought to count for something, right? Ji-chan made everything official, so they can't change any of it, right?"

"I don't know, but no matter what happens we're still gonna be a family, they can't take that away."

"I should have listened when you said it was a bad idea."

"No, I think you were right, okay? Bad idea or not, we owe it to the people who died to keep the clan alive, alright?"

Kushina nodded, but not quite convinced. I slipped into the bathroom on the way there and rushed to change out of my Konoha uniform. Unlike Konoha, which operated on a merit and skill-based promotion system, Uzu's promotions were based on minimum requirements and since Uzu was such a small village, the bar was low. While I was in Iwa, I met Uzu's requirements for Jōnin. Both of us had met Uzu's requirements for Chuunin before we made Genin for Konoha. Nagato was already dressed in my old Genin clothes, which were actually Uzu's Genin uniform.

An ANBU opened the door for us. Everyone else was already there, apprehensive under the gaze of the Hokage. Fusō had pulled the children into the corner to keep them quiet. They all clung tightly to the collars of their dogs.

It had only been four years since the destruction of Uzu, not nearly long enough for the Hokage to forget Uzu's uniforms. The three elders stood off his right shoulder and the entire group looked as if they were kicking themselves for not noticing. I didn't blame them. Uzu's Genin uniform, a tunic-length, sleeveless, dull green kimono and baggy, kapri-length black pants, were meant to be able to pass as civilian clothing at first glance. I had worn the uniform all the time. Kushina only wore it on Genin missions, but more often wore the bright yellow kimono of a similar style, which was the Chuunin uniform. On the back of all uniforms, the Uzumaki symbol was sewn in black thread. Uzu's Jōnin uniform, the same kimono, just a bright white, was unmistakable. Uzumaki Mito may have been a retired kunoichi, but she had still worn a full white kimono with the same pattern to remind everyone that she had been a Jōnin.

Kushina and I took off our hitai-ates and I placed them both on the Hokage's desk.

"The two of you have been playing this village as a fool since the day you arrived, haven't you?" The Hokage asked, his voice stiff with anger.

We all knew better than to respond to that.

"Kichiro-kun, could you please explain how you have been in two places at once this entire day?"

That threw me for a loop. I glanced at Kushina in confusion. She stuffed her hand in her pocket and pulled out a crumpled piece of paper. It was the notification that one of the orphans had gone missing. "I thought I found him," Kushina murmured. She then turned to the rest of the room. "I believe I can explain that. Almost two years ago, one of the orphans Kichiro rescued from Uzu went missing. While not operating as a kunoichi in the service of Konoha, I have been attempting to track down the missing orphan. I requested several missions from Konoha to try and find the missing Uzumaki when I discovered several other orphans had gone missing under similar circumstances from around Konoha. Nothing came of the requests, so I continued the investigation as a kunoichi of Uzu. With a bit of dumb luck, and skills from the horrible logic puzzles Kichiro made me do every other day for a year, I deduced who was behind the kidnappings. Since Kichiro's name and reputation carries more weight than my own, I transformed into him in order to gather the solid evidence I needed to prove the individual responsible guilty. Shimura-sama caught me and proceeded to assist after I shared my findings."

I had completely forgotten about the lost kid and felt horribly guilty about it. A little voice in the back of my mind told me that there was nothing I could have done, but I tamped it down alongside the guilt. I couldn't afford the distraction, not now.

"We will address the issue later. The child has been found. Is everyone aware of the fact that the Uzumaki clan and all of its present members are not a part of Konoha, instead they have retained their status as allies of the village?"

Takeshi stepped forward. "Everyone is aware, Hokage-sama, including the children."

"Then tell me, why did you place the entire village under the impression that you were a part of Konoha?"

"Because we saw it as the only way to ensure Konoha kept their end of the treaty."

"Whose idea was this?"

Before Kushina could open her mouth, I stepped forward. "As clan head, it's my responsibility."

"You've come a long way for someone who tried to run off and hide under a rock because you didn't want to take care of anyone."

I couldn't help but flinch at that. Kushina slid in front of me. "That comment was inappropriate and cruel. The terms between our clan and Konoha are laid out in the treaty written by the Senju Hashirama and Uzumaki Ashina. Kichiro and myself are currently employed by Konoha as the Uzumaki's promised wartime contribution in exchange for Konoha's protection." I barely managed to stop my mouth from hanging open. I was supposed to be the cleverer one when it came to legal stuff, but Kushina held herself and spoke like a professional.

"Was Uzumaki Mito aware of this?"

"Yes," Kushina answered with certainty. She hated and feared Mito for reasons I wasn't quite sure of and too scared to ask about. I could barely imagine her voluntarily interacting with the woman, much less sharing a top-secret plan with her or even forming a plan with her.

The things I needed to Kushina to tell me about was growing steadily longer.

"What about the Shitagau?"

"Kichiro can't knowingly lie to you, nor can he turn against this village. Your orders are a grey area; I haven't finished trying to decipher the seal. You can't force him to hand over clan or personal information." Well that explained a number of things. I glanced down at my hands and noted that the holes the Hokage put through them went through the heel of my hand, not through the actual seal.

"Now that the main issue has come to light what do you intend to do?" The Sandaime addressed me.

I just shrugged. "The whole point of this, for me at least, was to prevent myself and Kushina from being manipulated."

"Once the clan is strong enough, we plan to return to Uzushiogakure and rebuild." Kushina stated. "Uzumaki Fūinjutsu is extremely powerful and once we gain enough in number, we'll be able to reactivate and sustain the defensive barriers, returning to the way things were before with Konoha giving the Uzumaki the protection of its name and the Uzumaki supporting Konoha with Fūinjutsu and Bijū hosts."

"No one in this village would have objected to that goal, why keep it secret?"

"Why didn't you authorize the use of lethal seals around our house?" I wasn't entirely sure how those two things connected.

"I see. And how long do you expect this to take?"

"A generation if we manage to find several more Uzumaki willing to join us who survived the massacre. Most likely, it will take two or three generations."

"Kichiro-kun, did you know about this?"

I shrugged. "I stick my nose in most things Kushina gets into." No, I didn't know that any of it had gone as far as it did. I had dismissed most it as Kushina playing at being an adult when I was still involved in her scheming, but her plans went further than I imagined.

"The two of you have had an ANBU guard for the majority of your time in the village. How did you slip this past them?"

"Honestly, I have no idea how they missed it." I rolled my eyes. "We didn't exactly try and keep it quiet until after we passed Konoha's Genin test. After that, it was just a matter of not talking about it. Considering we've barely seen each other since, it wasn't exactly difficult. For the record, we never lied, we just didn't advertise the fact. All of the paperwork is in order and we left it in the public domain." The statement had the perfect balance of truth and lie. Even I had a difficult time distinguishing them

"A shinobi never assumes anything," Kagami said from the door. I spun around in alarm, having completely missed his entrance, though that fact didn't exactly surprise me. "All of the Uzumaki were handed their citizenship papers and told to turn them in. They never did and no one followed up. Honestly, whose idea was it to hand a bunch of orphans, never mind the assumption that they could all apparently read, papers and expect them to understand them well enough to fill out? The oldest of them, Kichiro, was _seven_. There were assumptions made all around. Have we all learned our lesson?"

No one actually answered that.

"Hatake-san included intelligence as part of your training, Kichiro-kun. You of all people ought to have known better."

"The only reason Kiri made it into Uzushiogakure to destroy it was because of an information leak that came from Konoha." Everyone turned towards Nagato in alarm. He clutched at my uniform, nervous, one hand clamped over his mouth.

"Nagato, why do you think that?" I asked tightly.

"A-a man came and told me when I trained late last night. He had papers and everything to prove it. He showed me his Sharingan to prove he was from Konoha."

"Was he, by any chance, wearing a mask, an orange one with a black design?"

"How did you—"

" _Shit! Shit! Shit! Shit! Shit! I freaking knew it!_ " I slammed my hands on the Hokage's desk and spoke as quickly as I could in English, not even trying to tamp down the rising panic. " _Madara Uchiha is freaking alive. It's his eyes in Nagato's head and he's trying to divide Konoha and the Uzumaki, specifically Nagato._ " I held eye contact until I was certain he got the gist of the message, even if he didn't understand the actual message, just the names.

"So he is alive," the Sandaime pinched the bridge of his nose. "Did he have anything to do with what we discussed earlier?"

"How the hell am I supposed to know? Victim, remember?"

"Nii-san, what are you talking about?"

"This is so far above your clearance level, Kushina, it's not even funny. Nagato, if the information leak actually existed, it was a tragic mistake that a ton of people could be blamed for, but assigning blame solves absolutely nothing because there's nothing that can be done to change the past. The man you met is trying to turn you against the entire world. The Sharingan can be transplanted, in fact, it is a rather simple procedure, so there's no way to tell if the man you met is actually an Uchiha, it just means that they're good at scavenging a battlefield or Genjutsu or both. Don't trust anything he says, that goes for everyone. He is probably the most dangerous person you'll ever meet."

The Hokage finished for me. "The matter of the Uzumaki clan's status will be left alone and the documents classified. Kushina-chan you will remain as acting Konoha Chuunin. Everything will continue as it has. Nagato-chan, Kichiro-kun, and my advisors remain. The rest of you are dismissed," the Sandaime concluded.

Kushina sent me a worried glance as Ise put a hand around her shoulders and pulled her out after everyone else. The second they were gone, I turned to the Hokage. "Don't freak out, it'll only be for a second." I took a step away from Nagato and drew on the Kyuubi's chakra to heal my hands and identify everyone in the room. Before the chakra faded, the Hokage activated the security seals; the extremely powerful, Uzumaki-made seals, and the entire room lit up with chakra, brighter than the sun, blinding my chakra sense. "Ow!" I protested, rubbing my eyes as the chakra overload made me actually see spots. "Okay, I know you did that on purpose, while tactically sound, give me some warning next time! Ow! I didn't know sensing could be overloaded like that."

"This isn't a joke, boy!" Danzō snapped at me.

I ignored him and sat Nagato down in the nearest chair, pressing my hand to his forehead with a jutsu meant to identify the presence of a Genjutsu. Luckily, everyone present knew better than to disturb a medic. If it wasn't for the fact that I knew there had to be a Genjutsu on Nagato and spent five times as long on the jutsu quadruple checking his entire chakra system for it, I would have missed it. It was extremely subtle.

"Alright, Nagato, I need you to answer as truthfully as possible. Ignore everyone else in the room and just focus on me." I waited for his full attention to focus on me. "Do you trust me?"

He opened his mouth to respond automatically. "Y—"

"No, I want you to think about it first and decide if you really trust me."

He stopped to consider it, closing his eyes. "Yes, I trust you completely."

"Okay. There's a Genjutsu that's affecting a specific part of your brain the processes emotions. You don't have enough chakra control to remove it yourself, so that means I'm going to have to do it. It's not pleasant, okay? Are you ready?" I pressed my hand against either side of his head. When he nodded, I tossed a knot of chakra through his head. His face twisted with pain, so I hurried to check for any more Genjutsus. The Hokage had started to explain the situation to the rest of those present and was nearly done by the time I finished.

"I think the most pressing question is how the boy knows for certain that it is Uchiha Madara and was able to identify him."

"I read a book before I came to Konoha. It was reliable, so don't even go 'Kichiro is nuts'. That's all I'm willing to share on the matter."

To my surprise, the Hokage stopped Danzō from attacking the fact.

"I'm certain this book is what would have happened if I didn't survive the destruction of Uzu." When no one stopped me, I sat down and pulled Nagato into my lap. I needed something solid to hold on to. "I'll tell this chronologically; it'll make more sense. I'm not exactly sure how many years ago, but a very long time ago, the Sage of Six Paths defeated and became the Jinchuuriki of the Jūbi, which was enslaving the world in something called the Infinite Tsukuyomi. When he realized the Jūbi would be released upon his death, he split it up into the nine Bijū we know today. He sealed the body of the Jūbi into the moon. I'm pretty sure there's more to that part of the story, but that's all I remember. Either way, the Sage had the Rinnegan, which is related to the Sharingan. He had two sons—"

"Nii-san, Kushina already told me this story," Nagato interrupted.

"Yes, but not everyone has heard the story and it's all relevant. Be patient." I took a deep breath and continued. "The Sage had two sons, Indra and Ashura, the forerunners of the Uchiha, Senju, and Uzumaki clans. In short, Indra inherited the Sharingan from his father, and as the older, more powerful of the two brothers, he was practically a shoe-in to be the Sage's successor. Ashura was instead appointed the successor, because, you know, friendship and all that stuff. Indra wasn't happy and their disagreements carried on to the subsequent generations. The Uchiha and Senju have been fighting ever since while the Uzumaki just went off and did their own thing, avoiding becoming a part of the clan wars. No wars meant less shinobi. Less shinobi and less fighting meant less dying, and the Uzumaki clan got big enough to set up its own village long before the Shodai was born."

"Ironic that the clan with the most volatile emotions was the most peaceful," Kagami snorted.

"Ironic, maybe, but not unreasonable. The Uzumaki are much more open and honest, so with less deception, their disagreements were much shorter and fewer grudges were held. Fūinjutsu takes a lot of time and energy. Why should the clan put any of that time and energy towards a war when they could put it towards making things make big entertaining booms and scaring everyone else away from their apparently contagious insanity?"

Nagato quickly stifled his giggle.

"Back on topic. Uchiha Madara and Senju Hashirama were basically the Indra and Ashura of their generation. Everything started out happy-ish, they made peace, had a falling out, made peace again, you know, the usual brother thing, which led up to the—"

"Why are we listening to a stupid history lesson from this pipsqueak?" One of the elders, Homura, snapped.

I rolled my eyes. "Those who cannot remember the past are condemned to repeat it. If you want the explanation, you listen to the whole thing or I walk out that door right now."

"There's no need for that," the Hokage quickly intervened. "Mitokado-san, if you are unwilling to listen, you may leave knowing that everything discussed here is of more secrecy than The Incident, if not, keep your opinions to yourself until they are asked for."

From the way their shoulders drooped, I found myself curious about said incident. "What's—" I began.

"I don't care who you are, I swear you will not survive the conclusion of that question," Danzō snapped at me.

"Anyways, everything led up to the final battle between Madara and the Shodai at the Valley of the End. Somehow, Madara survived the battle and has hated Konoha ever since, but never gave up his ideals for peace, perverted as they are. Remember how I mentioned the Infinite Tsukuyomi before? Well, Madara wishes to enslave the world with it again in order to force peace. In order to do that, he needs to recreate the Jūbi. Apparently, the destruction of the Uzumaki clan, which I thought was unrelated until now, had something to do with it."

* * *

 _Author's note: Greetings from Houston! I took a brief break and when I came back to ff, I found that I had over 800 followers on this story. 800! That's twice the size of my former high school! THANK YOU ALL SO MUCH!_


	45. Chapter 45

I let them think on that for a little bit. That thinking quickly turned into a battle of wills between the Hokage and Danzō.

"If that was all there was to it, you would have no objection to sharing how you came across this information," the Hokage said once Danzō backed down from the silent argument. "There are currently equally pressing matters that I need to attend to. This meeting has already taken far longer than intended. We will continue this tomorrow evening. Until then, Kagami will take you back to ANBU. Nagato-chan will accompany you. Considering the situation, he will join you in ANBU." I glared at the Hokage. "Unless you have an alternate way to both protect and train the child, my decision is final."

Kagami grabbed both of us by the arm, and after a quick Shunshin, dropped us in front of the new room I shared with Roach and disappeared without another word. Roach may only have been thirteen, but he was an established ANBU agent so I respectfully knocked on the door. After a few seconds, it opened to reveal Roach looking exceedingly bored. He opened his mouth to ask about Nagato, thought better of it, then returned to his desk in the middle of the room to glare at the stack of paperwork.

"Why do we have to write reports for successful scorched earth missions? There's nothing left to report on." He didn't miss it when I flinched at the casual mention of where it was likely a hundred people or more had died. "Sorry, that was a crass thing to say in front of a newbie. I have training to do."

I ignored him as he left and closed the door behind me, let go of Nagato, and dumped my weapons in the locker. The boy dogged my steps anyways. I didn't care. A little bit of searching turned up two pairs of shorts to sleep in, as well as several nightshirts. I tossed the shorts with the drawstring and the slightly smaller shirt at Nagato in exchange for the small handful of weapons he had, which I put in the locker. While he changed, I went into the bathroom and stood in front of the sink to take the bandages off my hands and wash away the blood dried on them. I changed into the shorts, but before I put the shirt on, I noticed that I hadn't put my sticks in the locker with the rest of my weapons.

"Nii-san?" Nagato asked cautiously from the doorway as I stared at them. Two sticks couldn't do squat against Madara. He had already started trying to mold Nagato to his will, which meant he was still watching Nagato. I wasn't paranoid. On missions, the only reason I slept wearing my weapons was because Sakumo made me. The only time I carried them was for training or when I was outside the village. "Nii-san!" Nagato yanked on my arm so hard I nearly toppled over.

"I'm sorry, what do you need?"

"You weren't answering!"

"I'm sorry, Nagato, I'm listening now, what do you need?" I crouched so I could look him in the eye. He studied me carefully.

"You're hurting."

"I'll be fine, Nagato, you don't have to—"

"Stop it! Stop it!" He shrieked at me, tears dripping down his face. "Th-the masked man, h-he wasn't all wrong." My heart stopped. "How can you defend Konoha when all it does is hurt you?"

"Nagato—"

"Stop it! Stop pretending that everything is okay! It's not okay!" Nagato looked down at my chest. The Kyuubi's seal stood out against my stomach and the Shitagau on the center of my chest. I reached out to placate him, but he just grabbed my wrist and shifted his gaze to the seal there and the new scar on the heel of my hand. My shoulders drooped and I dropped to my knees in front of him.

"What do you expect me to say?" I asked quietly, staring at his bare feet.

"The truth."

I laughed humorlessly. "You don't want to hear the truth; you wouldn't understand it. It would only hurt you too."

"Try me," he challenged.

I nearly exploded at him, but I managed to bring myself under control just in time.

"I don't want you hurting anymore, Nii-san."

"You're a good kid, you know that?" I couldn't look at him, but I tipped my head back to look at the ceiling.

"Nii-san—" I stood up, cutting him off and pulled on the shirt.

"I'm not sure how to explain it." I quickly folded my uniform and dodged past Nagato to fold his as well and place them side-by-side on the desk in similar piles.

"I don't want you to be alone anymore." He dogged my steps.

"I'm not alone, Nagato, you're right here with me." I reached out to ruffle his hair, but he knocked my hand away.

"That's not what I mean."

"What do you mean?"

"You're always doing everything by yourself. You don't even try and make any friends. You need friends."

"I have—"

"Family doesn't count, neither does Hatake-sensei because you _have_ to like us and spend time with us."

"I like and spend time with Minato."

"Yeah, but To-chan says he and Kushina are joined at the hip so it doesn't count."

I laughed. "They're the perfect pair, aren't they?"

"You're changing the subject."

"I am, why do you have to be so gorram smart? You don't have to worry about me, I promise, okay?"

"No!"

"Nagato—"

"Stop it!"

"Stop what?"

"Everything's just wrong!"

"That's not true."

"The masked man, he told me that Konoha would only keep hurting you, that you couldn't do anything but just take it because if you tried to stop it, they would only hurt you more. Every time you tell them they're wrong, they'll refuse to listen and keep hurting you and hurting you and hurting you and it's _wrong_! Why do you keep trying to defend it?"

"Tell me, if everything is as messed up as you claim, what should I do about it?"

"Fight back! You never fight back! You only talk and talk and talk and no one ever listens! Make them listen! Fight back!" He screamed the last sentence.

I forced out as much killing intent as I could muster. Faster than Nagato could react, I struck him in the center of his chest with an open palm. Before he could take a step back, I swept his feet out from underneath him, grabbed him around the neck and slammed him into the stone floor, careful not to give him a concussion. "I fought back, now tell me exactly what that accomplished. Am I wrong or am I right?" I tightened my grip on his neck so he couldn't make a sound. "How certain is that faith you had in me earlier? Is it shaky yet? Broken?" I released his neck to press my fingers against his temples. Nagato tried to jerk away, but I had already temporarily blinded him and his throat was too sore for him to speak. I jerked back and Nagato scrambled to his feet, backing away. "You're crippled, blind," I hissed in his ear and used a chakra scalpel the draw a thin scratch the length of his forearm. "You can't shout for help." Faster than he could track, I hissed in his other ear and broke his little finger. "You have to listen to me," I breathed in his face. He tried to jerk backwards, but his back hit the wall. "Does this make me right?"

I dropped the killing intent and grabbed the hand with the finger I just broke and fixed it. Nagato tried to flinch away, but he was still shaky from the fright. A minute later, I finished healing the damage I had just dealt and left Nagato standing against the wall to sit down at the desk, my head in my hands. It took a while, but eventually, Nagato approached me and knelt beside me. He tugged at my shirt, but I ignored him, not moving.

"Nii-san?"

I hummed acknowledgment.

"The masked man said you were angry, sad, and scared, but you aren't, are you?"

"Sad and scared, yes. Angry, no."

"How can you not be angry?" Nagato shot to his feet and grabbed my shoulders. He would have shaken me if I hadn't grabbed his wrists to stop him. "They hurt you! Over and over they hurt you! They deserve your anger; you deserve to hurt them back—"

"No." I said sharply.

"Why?" Nagato wailed.

"If I get angry, if I hurt everyone for every hurt they cause me, am I any better than they are? All that does is continue the cycle of what is wrong with this world. Justice is one thing. Revenge is much different."

Nagato slowly let go of me, but I didn't release him.

"If you hold yourself to a higher standard, others will follow. You're not the only person who's sick of the way the world works right now, but all they need is a leader, someone they can look up to and follow, someone who's willing to lose in order to lead. I'm not a leader, Nagato, I can't find it in myself to truly care about people I don't know or like. I just do my duty the best I can." I waited for it to sink in. When his chin stiffened in resolve and he scrubbed the tear streaks away, I finished. "It's late and we both need sleep; are there any other pressing questions?"

"Why?"

"Why what?"

"Why did the Hokage tell me to stay? Why did the masked man come to me?"

I hesitated, trying to find a nice way to put it. Eventually, I settled on the straight truth. "To put it bluntly, your eyes are not your own. Someone replaced your eyes with a dormant Rinnegan. I'm convinced it was Uchiha Madara, the masked man who visited you."

"I don't want—" Nagato exploded and reached up about to claw his eye out.

I barely managed to keep my grip on his wrists before he could follow through with the action. After a bit of struggling, he slumped to his knees.

"Why me?"

"Maybe it was because you were young, obviously shinobi material, your parents were civilians, and you were an Uzumaki so you would almost certainly be able to survive it if you activate the Dōjutsu. Maybe Madara has a base, or lives near Ame. Maybe you were just in the wrong place at the wrong time. I don't know."

"I don't want some traitor's eyes; I don't care how powerful they are. Take them out."

"No. Should Madara succeed at whatever he's attempting to do, the power of the Rinnegan might be the only thing able to stop him."

"Then give them to someone else." He started struggling again, but I was much stronger than him, at least for the time being.

"No," I maintained. "You're one of the very few people I can trust with that kind of power, okay?"

He jerked against me, trying to throw me off the chair, but I had chakra and twenty pounds on him. He still nearly pulled me off, considering I was underweight from my time in Iwa and getting severely injured on top of it. Finally, he gave up and conceded. I picked him up and tossed him on the bed and turned off the light.

I flopped down beside him and let him curl against my side.

It didn't take Nagato long to fall asleep, but even though I knew I should have been exhausted, I lay there staring at the indecipherable graffiti on the underside of Roach's bunk. Sometime in the middle of the night, Roach returned, quietly announcing himself and locking the door behind him. I barely felt the bunk move as he swung himself up and flopped down.

"Go to sleep, newbie, or you won't be able to keep up tomorrow." He advised softly. "Whatever Hatake had you doing before will be a cakewalk in comparison to the hell you're getting here. The baby has the right idea."

"He's the same age you were when you joined," I retorted. "And he's only here because it's too dangerous for him anywhere else."

"Yeah, but he's probably more prepared than you. The man that's been training him is former ANBU. I had him for a few months, and that was before they retired him and he had missions to exhaust him beforehand. Seriously, though, go to sleep, I'll keep watch if it makes you feel better."

(-_-)

Too soon, Roach poked me in the shoulder, waking me instantly.

"Breakfast starts in five. I put your uniforms and armor out on top of your dresser. There's two storage seals on your desk for your training stuff."

I shook Nagato awake and rolled out of the bed to get dressed. Nagato followed without much trouble, though I did have to switch his shoes when he put them on the wrong feet and Roach had to put the boy's armor on for him, after watching him struggle for several minutes.

Nagato stayed as close to me as he could without appearing overly clingy.

Roach dragged us through the breakfast line and over to a table with the twins I had met the day before.

"Is he your little brother?" One of them squealed unexpectedly. Nagato nearly dropped his plate in alarm, trying to hide behind me.

"Is she your sister?" I rolled my eyes.

They laughed and dug in to the breakfast.

"Eat," I poked Nagato while inhaling my own food. I had a feeling he only did so because I told him to. Ten minutes later, Sakumo opened the door.

"Everyone under sixteen on training ground zero in eight minutes!" He announced.

Roach and the twins groaned while another small figure jumped up and hurried our way. "Who challenged who this time?" He slid into the seat beside Roach. The new arrival looked to be about fourteen

"I challenged Uzumaki in Taijutsu and weapons," one of the twins answered, then clarified, "The original, not the doppelganger."

"I'm sorry, what?" I asked in alarm.

"Every Wednesday is challenge day," the boy who just sat down explained. "When your week comes up, you can challenge anyone you want in any skill or pass it on to the next person. There's no need to look so apprehensive, it's just for fun. Roach has been reigning champion in everything since before I got here. Occasionally, the general even lets him challenge the older teens. I'm Toad by the way. Who's the little one?"

"My brother, Nagato," I answered when Nagato's grip on my shirt tightened and he didn't answer for himself.

"Nice to meet you. Anyways, we better get going. Yo, Ankle Biter!" He shouted across the room. "You still owe me big, so clean up this table, please and thank you!"

"Bastard!" The response came from across the room.

"And proud of it! Hop to!" He turned back to us. Roach was already standing up, so Toad grabbed my arm and the arm of one of the twins and started tugging us out the door. "Come on, Uzumaki! Everyone wants to see how the legendary Hatake's student stacks up!"

"Come on! I'm a medic!" I protested, barely managing to catch Nagato's hand as we were pulled along.

"No one cares."

"Medic means no combat!"

"Sucks to be you."

Two minutes later, we arrived at what I assumed to be the training ground in the middle of a courtyard.

"Weapons out, Kichiro," Sakumo ordered coldly. "You're facing one of the twins. You have three minutes to prepare. No jutsu or using the Kyuubi. If you last ten minutes, everything is fair, but you're still not allowed to use the Kyuubi."

"Understood." I pulled out the storage seal and donned my pouch of senbon, as well as my sticks. Before I stepped out onto the field where the twin I was facing was waiting, Sakumo handed me his bokken I occasionally trained with. I shook out my cold muscles and loosened them with a bit of medical chakra.

"You should be able to keep up with her in speed. In straight Taijutsu, she uses an advanced, personalized form of the Academy style. She's been training with the katana for a few months, and certainly hasn't earned a blade yet. She's just as deceptive as you when it comes to using tricks to win. On paper, you should be able to beat her, but she has ten times the amount of field combat experience. Any questions?"

"How much does she know about me?"

"She knows you're extremely well-rounded in Taijutsu and you can be brutal with those sticks and the bokken if pushed to it. Most of her information is outdated, but she knows she can't compete with you in Ninjutsu or Fūinjutsu, her reserves are still too small. I don't know about Genjutsu. She is also aware that you're as tricky as her when it comes to distractions and misdirection. Beyond that, I can't be sure. Her sensei specializes in stealth."

"So she has to go for a reasonably quick win. How's her stamina?"

"She may be young, but she's still ANBU. I'm not sure exactly how hard you trained in Iwa, but I'm pretty sure she can outlast you in Taijutsu if it comes to it."

"She can't, no teenager could outlast me in anything. Should I try for a quick win or push the match to the point where I can use jutsu?"

"That's entirely your call." Sakumo took a step back as I secured the bokken on my back the same way Sakumo wore his sabre. I walked out onto the field, slightly distracted by the full gloves on my hands I attached several senbon to the bottom of my shoes with chakra under the thin guise of wiping off the dust from the soles for better traction.

"He's a rookie, Kyo," a man called out from the opposite side of the training ground. "If you don't win this, you're in for hell later."

"He your sensei?" I asked as we met in the middle.

"Yeah."

"Good luck." I settled into my purposefully improper starting stance. "Whenever you're ready."

"How did you make Chuunin with a stance like that?"

"Medic," I shrugged and barely managed to dodge her first punch.

I played the evasion game, trying to get a decent feel for her style before engaging. She was extremely patient, though after the first minute of not landing a single punch and me not throwing a single strike, she did start to get a little frustrated and upped the speed enough that I could barely keep up. When it was nearing the second minute mark, she finally managed to force me into a position where I was forced to block her elbow on a collision course with my neck. I retaliated with a half-hearted strike towards her side with an open palm. She grabbed my wrist before it could land, confused at my sudden lack of speed and strength, but I grabbed her back and swung down, forcing her to compensate and letting me use her as a temporary swing. I flew behind her and tossed several senbon towards the backs of her knees as I passed. Only one landed as I rolled back to my feet. She yanked it out and tossed it to the side, shaking the pain out of her leg.

"First blood and first hit goes to Kichiro," Sakumo announced dully.

Kyo and I started to circle each other. "You're good," she commented.

I froze as my leg brushed against a piece of ninja wire. "Shit." I walked right into her wire trap, that I had no clue when or how she set it up, the ends of the wire wrapped tightly in her fists.

"Yield." She smirked at me.

I glanced around the wires, cataloging the pattern, trying to find the points it would unravel at.

"Kichiro, yield, it's not worth—" Sakumo tried to warn me, but I had already committed to my next move. It was the perfect trap, but she forgot to cover one escape route: directly up.

She saw it the instant my feet left the ground and tried to tighten the trap, but I was already out. Three kunai went flying through the critical points of the deadly web and the entire thing collapsed by the time I landed.

"I am going to kill that boy," Sakumo growled from the sidelines, but he didn't stop the match. My escape wasn't entirely bloodless and the wires had given me an impressive cut on the back of my right wrist, the joint of my right shoulder, and the inside of my left knee. The one on my shoulder was obviously the worst and my right arm was almost entirely out of commission for it.

"Up!" I chirped, pointing to the sky above her. It was the oldest trick in the book and she fell for it just long enough for me to sweep her legs out from underneath her and send her sprawling on her butt. The combination of injuries meant I had no choice but to draw the bokken with my left hand. I had already lost and everyone knew it, but I was definitely going to make her earn the win. While my bokken was slightly longer than the standard tantō, hers was as long as a full-sized katana.

I was ambidextrous, most ninja had to be. Wielding dual sticks meant that I had to be equally skilled to avoid giving an obvious opening, but my left was nowhere near as refined as my right. As long as I stuck to standard katas, I would be just fine, but katas never won fights. I just couldn't force my left hand to deviate smoothly enough to be effective.

The more frustrated I got, the looser the Kyuubi's seal became.

"Shit!" I snarled when I felt the chakra start to escape the seal. Luckily, Kyo sensed something was wrong and didn't press the advantage when the bokken fell from my hand and I stumbled back. "Stupid fox," I grumbled, falling to my knees.

 ** _You can beat that little brat!_**

 _If you were paying attention, it's Taijutsu and weapons only and I was specifically forbidden from using your chakra. Now back off._

 ** _What happened to freeing the Bijū?_**

 _Showing up in a spar against a little girl is only going to hurt your case._

 ** _I am the great Kyuubi! I shouldn't be required to—_**

 _Oh, shut it. I already know it's unfair so preaching to me won't change anything. They have to trust me before they can trust you, and I'm working on building that trust._

 ** _They fear you, I know you can sense it right now. Even your Sensei._**

 _Look at Nagato. He's not scared of me. Shit, he's coming this way._ I held up a hand to stop him, which probably looked freaky while doubled over and my eyes squeezed shut.

 ** _That boy is a pain._**

 _Shut up and go back to sleep or whatever you do inside the seal before I have to threaten you._

Gradually, the Kyuubi subsided.

I stood up. "It's all good now." Well, at least the wound on my arm had started to clot. "I'm ready to continue." Instead of approaching to regain the bokken, I pulled out my sticks and scowled at my injured arm when the muscles wouldn't support it properly. I probably should have started with the sticks since I trained my left hand more with them, but I couldn't change that now. "Time?"

"Four minutes left until everything is on the table," she supplied.

I set my feet defensively as she lunged.

With my sticks, it was easier to keep up and I didn't have to move as much, though Sakumo could probably lecture me about staying in one place too long. She weighed more than me, even though she was a year younger, and had the advantage of all her limbs working properly. It was only a matter of time before she took advantage of it. Sure enough, with two minutes left, she closed in and I took the opportunity to fling the senbon from my feet. I expected them to either land or distract her long enough for me to counter and force space. I did not expect her to know they were coming and leap over them while catching my counterstrike with her bare hand. I could feel the bones of her hand shatter through the wood, but she still managed to hold on to the stick and land on my chest with both feet, knocking me flat on my back, and holding a kunai to my neck. I froze.

"Kyo wins," Sakumo announced. She stepped off me, her bokken falling to the ground as she cradled her injured hand, tears in her eyes. Sakumo grabbed my good arm and pulled me to my feet while the girl's sensei pulled her aside. "Twice you relied on the senbon, and twice she beat it. Keep that in mind. Now fix your shoulder."

It only took a few seconds to close the wound on my shoulder. I made a motion towards the girl, but Sakumo stopped me.

"She's hurt!" I protested.

"She knows better than to take a hit like that on purpose." He pulled me off the field. "Toad and Ankle Biter, you're facing Kyo next, Toad, Ninjutsu only; Ankle Biter, Taijutsu. Kyo, no restrictions."

"She can't fight like that!" I insisted as Sakumo shoved me down on a bench. I stood right back up.

"This is ANBU, kid. In the field she doesn't have a medic to run to when she's injured, so she has to figure out a way around it."

"She's just a kid!"

"That's why we have this training, so she can learn to handle it in the field."

"I'm a medic and I'm standing right here. She's only going to get hurt even more facing two people!"

"Shut up and sit down, Kichiro. The only reason we're doing this training is because you're here. Because you're in ANBU now, we have access to more training methods than we would otherwise."

"That's just cruel."

"Again, I remind you, this is ANBU. Win or lose, she and her sister will be you and Nagato's next opponents and everything will be game except the Kyuubi." He slammed my bokken and my sticks into my stomach. "Behind you, there's a closet with weapons. Get Nagato and find him something he can use. A handful of kunai isn't going to do him any good. Those girls won't go easy on you, and they're going to target him to get to you."

Sakumo motioned Nagato over from where he stood beside the one-legged man I recognized from when I enlisted the retired shinobi to help train the Academy students. He took Nagato's hand and pulled him over.

"He feels like he owes you one for giving him something the Hokage denied him in his retirement, so once he egged his first three students on to Genin, he took Nagato under his wing," Sakumo explained.

Nagato hugged me around my waist as soon as he was close enough. Sakumo started the next match while I led Nagato into the room Sakumo indicated.

* * *

Author's note: Greetings from Rochester! (the biggest Rochester, according to Wikipedia) For all you German speakers, Nightmist96 finished the translation of the first chapter! It is posted here and on fanfiktion(punkt)de. Everyone send her hugs and well-wishes for the amount of time and passion she has put into this. Translating is hard work and she deserves a ton of credit.

Merry Christmas!


	46. Chapter 46

"I know you use kunai, but is there anything else?" I asked Nagato as I quickly located two standard pouches of kunai and attached them to the back of his uniform.

"Senbon, like you, but I'm not very good."

"Do you use them while fighting?"

"Distractions, mostly."

"Okay, I'm assuming you still use the long metal style instead of my small ones, right?"

"Yeah."

I pulled the correct pouch down and attached it to his thigh. "Anything else?"

"I don't use a lot of Taijutsu, mostly Ninjutsu."

"Front lines Ninjutsu or support?"

"Sensei says my reserves aren't big enough for front line Ninjutsu yet."

"Any elemental stuff yet?"

"Just one water jutsu."

"What level of Fūinjutsu are you at?"

"Level eight."

"Have you gone over joint sealing yet?"

He nodded.

"Okay, here's what we're going to do…"

(-_-)

Nagato and I only had five minutes to figure out our strategy before Toad managed to trap Kyo between two walls of earth, forcing her to yield with several cuts and bruises to show for it. Her sensei came on the field to bandage the cuts before leaving her and her sister to face me and Nagato, shoved onto the field by Sakumo.

"Nii-san, are you sure it's going to work?"

"If all else fails, it'll be impossible for them to counter."

"But I've never tried this before!"

"That's why it's the fourth backup plan."

"Backup plans are for if the original plan doesn't work, not for counting on the original plan to fail!"

"I tell this to Minato all the time: if you don't believe it's going to work, it's never going to work."

"Are you sure?"

"I'm absolutely positive."

"Okay."

"Kichiro, you are not allowed to use the Kyuubi and no one is allowed to kill. Whenever you're ready, begin." Sakumo announced.

Nagato hovered just off my left elbow and out of my sight as I settled into my starting stance.

Kyo lunged towards me. I ducked under her first strike and Nagato jumped onto my shoulders. I launched him as high as I could into the air, careful to keep my feet planted on the ground. Nagato spun uncontrollably on the way up. I waited until Kyo's sister leapt after him. Nagato stabilized his flight enough to block several kunai chasing him and retaliate with a dozen of his own, interspersed with nearly invisible senbon. She blocked them all, but missed my senbon flying in from her blind spot.

"Mai!" Kyo shouted a warning. I cursed under my breath as she managed to block all my senbon chasing after her.

"Suiton: Mizurappa!" Nagato shouted, dousing the entire area with a giant mass of water, knocking Mai out of the air.

I swore. Nagato used far too much chakra in that jutsu. Coming down, he was not in good shape.

"Sakumo is going to kill me for trying this," I muttered to myself before I slammed my hands into the ground, sucking the twins up to their necks. I flashed through the hand seals for a jutsu I had seen Sakumo use once. It was supposed to skewer an enemy, but I used a sloppy, half-formed version on myself to launch me into the air to intercept an unconscious Nagato. I grabbed him and hit the wall about twenty yards above the ground. The twins managed to escape, at least one of them, and helped the other out, while throwing at least thirty kunai at me. I jumped up to avoid them. "I yield!" I shouted and slid back down the wall. The second my feet hit the ground, I noticed the twins running towards me. "What the hell?" I growled. "He's out, I yield!" I shunshined across the training field, nearly slamming into a wall, still unable to control the damn jutsu. The twins just turned around and sprinted towards me. I laid Nagato on the ground and stood up. When they didn't stop, I pulled out the Kyuubi's chakra in full force. " **Stand down**!" I ordered, my voice deeper and louder with the Kyuubi's influence.

"Stand down!" Nagato's sensei and Sakumo echoed me, quickly followed by several others.

They stopped in their tracks. The second I was sure they wouldn't attack, I tamped down the Biju chakra and knelt beside Nagato, my hands glowing with healing chakra.

I knelt there for nearly an hour treating Nagato for chakra exhaustion. The majority of my efforts went towards keeping his organs functioning until his body could replenish enough chakra to stabilize him by itself. Chakra exhaustion was, in my opinion, the most dangerous part of being a shinobi. It was the primary reason training alone was frowned upon, and solo missions were rare. For a medic, it was one of the most difficult treatments to administer. Normally, life support consisted of keeping the heart beating and the lungs breathing. With chakra exhaustion, it meant that there wasn't any chakra to keep any of the organs functioning. Depending on the severity, a medic had to not only keep the patient's heart beating and them breathing, but they needed to keep the very cells of their patient functioning. Chakra kept the entire world alive. Luckily, Nagato hadn't used up so much chakra that I had to keep his cells alive, but I had to make sure his organs didn't accidentally shut down. It took all my concentration.

Distantly, someone tried to get my attention several times, but I determinedly ignored them. I also determinedly ignored my hands which were definitely trembling from the adrenaline and the difficulty of the treatment. Not for the first time, I wished I had Naruto's ability to bullshit the rules of the world.

Only the most highly-trained medics were able to share chakra with another person, but even then, they could only share chakra with a parent, sibling, or child without poisoning their patient, even that was only in a limited amount. I could give Kushina a chakra transfusion, but since I had to go back eight generations in the Uzumaki family tree to find a connection between mine and Nagato's genetics, it was nowhere near close enough, even though any full-blooded Uzumaki had compatible chakra for sealing projects.

Needless to say, the Uzumaki clan was impossibly huge before it's destruction. If the clan records were accurate, there was nearly two thousand people inside of Uzu at the time of its destruction, almost all of them were Uzumaki, maybe one or two hundred people who married into the clan, worked jobs the Uzumaki didn't care to or couldn't fill, or were travelling through the village. The Uchiha clan, the largest clan in Konoha, possibly the largest clan in the shinobi nations excluding the Uzumaki, had less than five hundred members at its peak, which was just before the Second Shinobi World War began.

I estimated there was about a hundred thousand people living in Konoha and only about half of those belonged to a clan. About a quarter of the population belonged to a shinobi clan, that is, a clan with more than seventy percent of their population active, in-training, or retired shinobi. The average civilian clan had about five percent of their members in the shinobi corps. Before the war, there was about fifteen thousand shinobi ranked Chuunin and above. I doubted half of that number were still alive. It was impossible to tell how many people were projected to join the shinobi corps, since the Academy was only for kids who were either part of their clan's leading families and attending as a formality to place the clan's future leaders in the public eye, or had no family to train them to the point where they could pass the Genin test. In peacetime, almost two hundred kids passed the Genin test every year. In wartime, it was less than half of that, even with the relaxed standards. The group of Genin I had briefly led was probably the most recent batch of graduates, with the clan Genin held back for political purposes.

When Nagato somewhat regained consciousness, I finally finished the treatment by knocking him unconscious. My head ached as I glanced over the rest of the training ground. Senseis and their students had broken off for individual training. There was a total of eight ANBU members present under the age of fifteen, not including Nagato and myself. I was sure only Roach, the twins, and one other were younger than fourteen.

Nagato's sensei and Sakumo were discussing something in undertones a few feet away. Sakumo was first to notice I had finished healing. They each grabbed one of my arms and set me with my back against the wall. Sakumo crouched in front of me, frowning. "How are you feeling?"

"Nagato will be awake in a few hours and he should be back to normal by tonight, if tired."

"I didn't ask about Nagato, I asked about you."

"Headache. A really bad headache. That technique was supposed to be done with three people minimum, but I can handle the chakra cost."

"Can you fix the headache?"

"Not really supposed to treat my own head. I just need to rest for a little while, too much medic jutsu."

"Fine then, I'll take it easy on you. Exactly how many times, total, have you attempted Doton: Ganchūsō?"

"You know I can't remember jutsu names for shit."

"The jutsu you used to help launch yourself into the air." Sakumo clarified.

"Um, once."

"I see. I've seen you manipulate wind like a genius, for the most part, you know what you're doing and I don't have a legitimate complaint since I doubt you would hurt yourself. Straight manipulation of your elemental affinity is one thing, straight manipulation of any element, I can let slide. Attempting extremely lethal jutsu on yourself in a spar for a non-lethal purpose, especially when it's not your natural affinity could quite possibly be the stupidest thing I've seen or heard of you doing."

"Enough, I know it was stupid, but it was the only thing with hand seals I could think of. It takes too long to try and manipulate an element without hand seals, especially when I've never done it before."

Sakumo considered my answer. "Think of something better, and quick."

I thought for a minute. "Of the elemental jutsu you've taught me, how many did I actually manage to create in a shape that resembled what it was supposed to look like on the first try, or even the hundredth try? None of them. The water jet thing that I do is supposed to be in the shape of a dragon and I still haven't gotten it, because I spent so much time on making wind blades. I just suck at shape manipulation, so the deadly spiky part of the earth jutsu would be far beyond my proven capabilities."

"Better. How's your stamina?"

"I spent most of my time on strength and stamina while I was in Iwa. I need to work on skill more than anything in order to catch up since I couldn't exactly work on jutsus in an enclosed space."

"At least you learned something. Up, it's past time to start."

I stood up without complaint and Sakumo led me to the center of the training ground. The entire place was as big as a football field, which made it ideal for practicing larger jutsu.

"Make a tornado."

"I'm sorry, what?" I gaped at him. I had never even considered attempting something like that.

"Make a tornado. Not a full-size one, obviously, not even the Hokage can control the weather, but one just big enough to leave you in the center. Try not to make it taller than the buildings. There's no need to risk catching anyone in it."

I studied Sakumo for a minute to make sure he was actually serious before closing my eyes.

"Hatake, are you sure the newbie can—" Nagato's sensei said apprehensively.

"He can, it's just a matter of _actually trying_." Sakumo sent the last two words pointedly my way.

"I'm going, I'm going!" I insisted. I started at my feet and slowly started to swirl the air, before expanding it upwards.

"Even with the Kyuubi, there's no way the kid has enough chakra to sustain—"

"Just watch."

Anything else was drowned out by the roaring of the wind in my ears as the air swirled around me. Once I got it spinning fast enough, it was almost self-sustaining. Unfortunately, it made me extremely dizzy. When I started to stagger to one side, I immediately cut the chakra to the miniature, ten-foot-tall tornado. I staggered out of the jutsu feeling like I had six too many drinks.

Luckily, I didn't puke as Sakumo collected what had to amount to a lot of money from the other sensei.

"I ought to get some of that," I grumbled, as my equilibrium refused to return and I fell into one of the people who had been watching. They put a hand on my shoulder to steady me.

"Holy shit, kid. How can you do _that_ and still lose to Kyo?" I couldn't identify the man I had fallen against.

"It was a no-Ninjutsu spar, remember? It's hard to bullshit something I'm not allowed to use."

A few seconds later, I was swarmed by a bunch of preteen ninja demanding details.

"What hand seals did you use?"

"Can you do it again?"

"You have to teach me how to do that!"

"What's the name of that jutsu?"

"Can you do anything else like that?"

"That is the biggest jutsu I've ever seen!"

"Did Hatake teach you?"

"You look really green."

"How do you control that much at once?"

"You have to show us again."

"How long did it take you to learn that?"

"What's your affinity?"

"Seriously, what's the name of the jutsu?"

"Alright, alright, give him space, something like that isn't exactly easy." Sakumo finally finished collecting his winnings and rescued me, holding me upright against his side. "First, who can tell me what Kichiro did? Toad, go ahead."

"It was definitely a wind jutsu. It has to be A-rank at the very least considering how big it was. It definitely looked like a tornado, but there's no way I was gonna get close enough to be sure."

"You're right, it was a tornado. What are the effects and purpose of the jutsu on an enemy or the surroundings? Thing Two."

"It tore up the ground and sprayed dirt everywhere, so it could be used to blind an enemy, and considering the speed the air was spinning, I doubt any projectile weapons could have made it through, so it's defensive in that aspect. It could be a power deterrent to avoid further confrontation, but jutsus like that tend to have more flash and less power. Presumably, it would send an enemy flying if they got in contact, just like it did with the ground."

"Good job. Roach, what are the effects on Kichiro?"

"Dizziness, primarily. Chakra cost seemed negligible, but I can't be sure if he just has impossible reserves or the jutsu didn't cost much."

"How do you know, Roach?"

"He's standing crooked, well, more crooked than usual."

"I do not stand crooked!" I protested, straightening and withdrawing from Sakumo's support.

"Yeah you do, you always slouch."

"That's not—"

"Kichiro, shut up. Roach, continue."

"He's standing crooked, but he's tense and moving at a normal speed, so he's not tired or intoxicated, just disoriented. Since the jutsu was basically spinning wind at a high speed, dizzy is the obvious conclusion."

When he stopped there, Sakumo prompted, "How did you figure chakra cost?"

"He's obviously not tired, so it can't have been too exhausting."

"How do you know he's not faking?"

"Because he sucks at acting."

"Why do you think the chakra cost of the jutsu is so low? Anyone?"

When no one else answered, I spoke up. "An object in motion will stay in motion unless acted upon by an outside force. So, physics. Once I started the jutsu, it created a system that limited the interference of outside forces so it was nearly self-sustaining. I don't know how or why, it just worked."

"Thank you. Roach, partner with Thing Two. Ankle Biter, partner with Mai. Toad, partner with Kyo. Thing One, Kichiro, and Gopher, you already have at least the basics of your affinity down. Everyone find their group!" The kids gathered around me paired off. A tall boy about fifteen with black hair and a plain face and missing the littlest finger on his left hand appeared beside me with a scowl, closely followed by a shorter boy with a thick scar across his right cheek from the bridge of his nose to his jaw, which was partially covered by lank blond hair.

The boy with the scar held out his hand. "I'm Bat, or Thing one, as everyone insists on calling me."

"Kichiro. Let me guess, is Roach responsible for the nickname?"

"How'd you know?"

I shrugged, finally able to stand without swaying, even though my head was still pounding. "Roach told me his father used to tell him a lot of stories, and I know a lot of the same ones. Thing One and Two are characters in one of them."

"What kind of characters?"

"Professional troublemakers and whirlwinds of destruction."

"I see. Thank you for that bit of insight. I will make sure you are spared from the trouble and destruction I am about to cause for a certain little bug."

"My pleasure, and your consideration is greatly appreciated."

"Everyone shut your traps if you know what's good for you! Thank you!" Hatake shouted over the talking that had erupted. "All senseis are free to go. Duck, Mole, and Rooster: General has missions for you to pick up this evening."

All the adults except Sakumo and Nagato's sensei, who was sitting beside Nagato, vanished in a hurry.

"Now, I don't know how you all got away with it, but most of you don't know more than the basics of your affinity. Kyo, you're only going to hurt yourself more if you keep trying to splint that hand with senbon and ninja wire. Use the proper materials or see our new resident medic. As for the rest of you with fire affinities, I want you to take a kunai and set it on fire for three minutes without burning it or heating up the metal. Take off your gloves and the armor on your arms, it's easier. Fair warning, you better get it quick, there will be incentives, and no slacking. You have partners to help you, so use them. Now hop to! Kyo, medic, now. Toad, stop poking at that cut or I'll make it bigger."

Kyo pushed her way through the dispersing group and held out her injured hand to me. "Sit down," I murmured, and knelt with her, pressing my hand against her forehead for diagnostics. She was beat up, but it wasn't as bad as I expected. Now that I took a second look, everyone was at least a little bloodied and definitely bruised. I healed her broken hand and barely managed to grab her ponytail and yank her back down so I could heal her sprained knee. She tried to get up again, but I already had a firm grip on her wrist so I could reverse the damage done to her shoulder when I assumed someone had thrown her. By that point, she looked as if she was about to murder me, so I let her go without insisting on healing the bruises.

I stood back up and Sakumo launched into his instructions. "Kichiro is wind-natured and both of you are fire natured. Fortunately, or unfortunately, whichever you prefer, he has twice your skill in elemental Ninjutsu as well as probably three times as much chakra as the two of you combined, as well as medic-level control. Kichiro, fortunately, or unfortunately, whichever you prefer, you have a quarter of their experience in using said Ninjutsu in a fight and while you have the rare ability to manipulate your element without hand seals, your speed at doing so sucks. So, the three of you are going to spar, Thing One and Gopher against Kichiro. Gopher and Thing One, you can only use fire, keep it at half-speed attacks until I say otherwise, and Kichiro, you can only use wind. Begin." I barely had time to dodge as two not-very-impressive fireballs shot towards me.

I sliced one in half and dodged the other. Wind blades were almost easy, considering how much I practiced with them, but I was limited to one at a time. Outlasting them wouldn't be a problem, I was probably on par in stamina as Sakumo due to a combination of the loosened Kyuubi seal and Uzumaki heritage. Even if I did get burned, I would be able to heal it and continue far longer than they would be able to. What worried me was what Sakumo had planned afterwards.

While I was thinking, I ducked under a whip of fire, and barely managed to roll out of the way when the ground underneath me caught fire. Sakumo left us when I blew out Gopher's fire-gloved fist with a gust of wind from my mouth and twisted out of the way of his momentum to find myself in Thing One's trap, which consisted of an impressive array of fireballs raining down from above. I leapt upwards and slipped between two of them and blew the fire towards an empty section of the field.

When they started to regroup, I glanced around the training field. All the others had taken off the uniform gloves and the armor on their forearms. "I got it!" Roach exclaimed. Faster than I could track, Sakumo was in front of him and pressing the flat of the kunai against the inside of the boy's wrist. He made a strangled noise of pain. When Sakumo pulled it away, I could see the blister it left from across the field.

I didn't have any more time to think about it as Gopher and Thing One silently decided on a strategy and were started to flank me. I wasn't, by any means, and offensive or aggressive fighter. If at all possible, I stayed on the defensive, waiting for the opportunity to take down my opponent in a way that would cause the least amount of damage. My opponents had most likely figured that out, if the way they weren't as careful about keeping their guards up as they should have been during the next exchange of ninjutsu. Unfortunately for them, Sakumo was still watching the match while he tested the progress of the others by laying the kunai against their skin. I wanted to protest, but Gopher and Thing One never gave me a chance.

I did find it odd that all the other young ANBU members had a fire affinity. Sure, it was the most common in Konoha, but I expected at least one person to have a different affinity.

The lapse in attention nearly got me burned that time. Fortunately, it was missed when Sakumo tossed three kunai at us. Gopher earned a gash in his arm and Thing One got stabbed in the calf. I barely managed to bend backwards and avoid the one flying towards my head, both hands occupied with holding the other two off. "Keep your guard up. Just because you can get away with it, doesn't mean you're allowed to form bad habits. Kichiro, if you don't start attacking back. I will encase your feet in stone until you do."

I knew when Sakumo was kidding and when he wasn't. I started counter-attacking. Ten minutes later, Sakumo told my opponents to up their speed to the point where I could barely keep up. I earned several burns in the process of adjusting. Somehow, I wasn't entirely sure how, I managed to catch Thing One in the wind prison. It only lasted a few seconds before Gopher forced me to release him or get incinerated, but the lucky hit surprised me.

"Everyone, break!" Sakumo announced sometime later. It was good timing too, because there was no way I would have been able to avoid or counter Gopher's next attack while I was engaged with Thing One's. "Over here, Kichiro." Sakumo corrected as I was about to take the opportunity to check on Nagato. I hesitated, torn between following orders, I was already in hot water with Sakumo, and being a medic. I met his gaze for a moment then continued towards Nagato. Luckily, the boy was awake and sitting up, even if his sensei had a hand on his shoulder to stop him from tipping to one side.

"How are you feeling?" I asked softly, holding a hand to Nagato's forehead.

"Tired, really tired. I'm sorry I messed up, Nii-san. You could have won if it wasn't for me."

"I don't care about the match."

"But I do."

"Well, we can try again when you get better, okay?"

He nodded. "You're really good with wind ninjutsu. Can you show me how to do that?"

"Of course, but not until you've recovered. I don't think I need to say this, but no using chakra until later, okay?"

Nagato nodded.

"Good, I have to get back to the others before Sakumo gets fed up with me. Are you going to be okay here?"

"Can I stay with you?"

I shrugged. "Can he?" I asked Nagato's sensei.

"I think you'd be better off sitting here with me, Nagato. Just because you can't train, doesn't mean you can't keep learning."

"You'll train with me later, right, Nii-san?"

"Promise."

"Hatake-sensei looks really angry."

"I suppose that's my cue." I jumped to my feet and hurried over to where the others were meeting.

"If it wasn't for Tsunade's direct orders on the contrary, you wouldn't be getting this," Sakumo slapped a ration bar against my chest. It only took me a few seconds to inhale the entire thing. "Now that Kichiro has finally decided we are worth his time, let's get to work."

* * *

 _Author's note: Greetings from Houston and Happy 2018! I have to say, I hope "Let's get to work" is the theme of 2018._

 _One thing I don't understand about the new year celebrations: Why would people stay up late, go out drinking, scream in the dark at midnight, then go to sleep even later, only to wake up with a hangover the next morning to start their first actual day of the new year? Especially with top new year's resolutions are along the lines of being healthier and living a better lifestyle. Wouldn't it make more sense to go to sleep early and wake up to watch the sunrise so the year actually begins restfully, peacefully, and happily? Maybe spend your day with family/friends or doing something you love rather than just 'doing what everyone else does'. I think that start of the year is much better than drunken screaming, explosions, and overworking emergency personnel who deserve a break even more than the rest of us. Don't get me wrong, I love fireworks, but there are enough bombs going off in the world, why should we start the year with even more?_

 _I went to sleep early on New Year's Eve this year and apparently punched my sister a few times when tried to come in my room and celebrate in the middle of the night. I thought it was a dream, but apparently, I actually did hit her. I spent the morning happily watching the sunrise and reading while my fam was groaning. I hope I can spend the rest of this year well-rested, content, wisely warning people away from stupid things, smirking at the stupid things they do anyway, and feel no sympathy for the trouble they bring down on their own heads._


	47. Chapter 47

"Roach, what was the first jutsu Gopher used against Kichiro?" Sakumo began without missing a beat.

I frowned, not quite sure why the 'oh shit' expression was on everyone's face.

"Katon?" Roach winced as if he knew something bad was going to happen. Sakumo made hand seals so quickly that I nearly missed them, and fire blistered the palm of Roach's hand, even as he tried to dodge.

"What the hell—" I started to protest, but Gopher pinched me in warning. I found myself wondering exactly how good Sakumo was, considering everyone seemed to think Roach was untouchable. Aside from the injuries Sakumo had given him, he actually was, and everyone else was practically black-and-blue in comparison.

"Thing Two, what was your brother's thirty-second jutsu?"

A blond boy, who was very obviously Thing One's younger brother, paled. "Katon: Karyūdan?"

"Do you know, or are you guessing because that's your brother's favorite jutsu?"

"Guess?"

"You guessed wrong." Thing Two cringed back as Sakumo burned the boy's hand as well. "Kyo, what was the only jutsu Kichiro used?"

"That's a trick question, he never said any jutsu names or used any hand seals, and in order to be a jutsu, it has to meet at least one of those requirements."

"Wrong again, I know for certain you got your hands on his file that the General leaked, so you should be able to identify the jutsu without either." She was burned as well. "Since you were so eager to speak, Kichiro, tell me the order your comrades mastered the kunai trick."

I gritted my teeth before rattling off the order. "Toad managed it first but tried to hide it, then Mai, Roach, Kyo, Ankle Biter, then Toad had you check his work, and Thing Two got it last, but was the only person who didn't get branded in the process. Why the hell did you have to burn them? There was absolutely no reason—ow!" Gopher pinched me again.

"It seems only our resident newbie would have been able to give a reliable report on this morning's training. There is absolutely no excuse for none of you to be monitoring your surroundings, especially with a Ninjutsu fight occurring. Everyone needs to start paying attention, this is your only warning."

I winced at that; however, Sakumo did have a point. Keeping track of potential enemies on a battlefield was an essential skill, especially for younger operatives who needed every advantage they could get. Sakumo had drilled that into me as much as he could, especially since I was a medic and more vulnerable because of it. " _Constant Vigilance_ ," I muttered under my breath.

A beat later, there was a stifled snort of laughter before Roach collapsed, howling.

I barely managed to keep a straight face as everyone looked between us.

"Kichiro, Roach, and Gopher will be teammates against everyone else."

That sobered Roach up quick. "Shit, that ain't fair!"

"Sucks to be you, Roach," Sakumo shrugged.

The next second, Roach had grabbed my wrist and was pulling me away.

"Not so fast, Kichiro needs to heal everyone."

Roach released me, but continued marching some little ways away, studying everyone and discussing something with Gopher as I knelt down to start healing. An hour later, in which everyone had time to rest except me, I finished healing all but the most menial injuries. The Ninjutsu spar and the tornado had used up about half of my chakra reserves. Nagato's healing, as well as the healing of seven other moderately injured kids put me down to a third of my chakra remaining. That put me on-par with a Jōnin-track Chuunin in terms of reserves. It was more than anyone else on the training ground had, excluding Sakumo. Considering everyone I was facing was physically bigger and more experienced than me, Taijutsu wasn't a reliable option. I wasn't sure my reserves would hold out for as long as I would need them to. A glance at Sakumo told me it was an intentional attempt to exhaust me.

"Before we begin, there will be limitations. Kichiro, absolutely no Kyuubi and try to act like a medic. Roach and Gopher, that means you have to protect Kichiro. Everyone, no more than two people can attack a single person. Both teams have ten minutes to figure out their strategies. Go."

I blinked and Roach and Gopher had already grabbed me and were dragging me across the field.

"I'm telling you, it's six against three. They're going to send the twins against you and the brothers against me while Toad and Ankle Biter take down Kichiro. Once we lose him, we have to disengage and retreat, thus they win." Roach insisted.

"They know that's exactly what we'd expect and we can avoid being separated. They'll attack as a unit, targeting Kichiro the entire time. Either way we lose our medic—"

"I can defend myself, you know," I retorted.

They ignored me.

"If we lose Kichiro, we lose—"

"Hey!"

"What?" Roach barked.

"I may not be anywhere near as good as you, but I am a _combat_ medic, that means I can fight; I'm not helpless. You're looking at the problem the wrong way."

They gave me incredulous looks.

"Hear me out. They're going to focus on some strategy to divide us in order to win right? You're expecting us to react to the problem. If we can put them on the defensive before that strategy can be implemented, we're not the ones being divided. Offense is the best defense after all."

Gopher snorted. "You obviously haven't seen Ankle Biter fight."

I frowned.

"He's the best Genjutsu user in the lower tiers of ANBU, excluding Roach, but Roach is probably going to make captain in the next year anyways. Some of his Genjutsu is borderline Ninjutsu. We could go on the offensive, but his defensive Genjutsus are the nastiest thing you've ever experienced."

"Does he need hand seals for his Genjutsu?"

"Obviously."

"Well, I can hit him with a Genjutsu right now and put him out of commission before the fight even starts if he's the only thing keeping you from an offensive approach."

"That's cheating!" Roach protested.

"I cheat like I'm damned and you kill people for a living. Get used to it." I glanced over at Ankle Biter. "Alright, the Genjutsu is set. I'll start it as soon as we start fighting."

They both scowled at me. "You refused to attack back in the Ninjutsu fight earlier until Sakumo made you," Gopher challenged.

"I didn't see any need to attack. It was two against one, and if I get hurt, I can heal myself. In this case, it's three against six in a melee. If someone, anyone, gets injured, there is every chance they won't be able to disengage fast enough, and that might cause them harm I can't reverse. The safest way is to end the battle as quickly as possible."

"Your very existence means your life is in danger. Why do you care about safety?"

"That is a discussion for another time. We need to hurry up on tactics. I already have Ankle Biter's Genjutsu covered. You don't have to worry about any jutsu from him, but if he switches to Taijutsu, he might realize I tagged him. What next?"

"I'll take the twins out right off the bat," Roach volunteered.

"Kichiro, you should be able to hold off whomever comes for you for long enough that Roach can help you. I'll intercept the brothers, but I'm going to need help."

"I can run support, you know."

"Why the hell didn't you say so sooner?" Roach snapped.

" _Combat_ medic. All have the same basic skillset."

"There's nothing in your profile—"

"My profile hasn't been updated since the end of my first mission."

"In that case—"

"Begin!" Sakumo announced.

"That wasn't—" someone tried to protest, but the three of us were already flying across the field towards the other group.

Roach got to them first and took the younger twin out with an arm to her throat before she could react. He spun around, but Kyo reacted fast enough to give him a nasty gash from his armpit to his hip with a kunai before his foot snapped out and shattered her knee. He knocked both girls out with a kunai to the temple before I could stop him. I made a mental note to lecture everyone on the seriousness of head injuries before Toad flew in my face.

For the first few seconds, I relied almost entirely on the reflexes Sakumo drilled into me. Toad was _fast_ , faster than Sakumo normally pushed me. After blocking a particularly vicious kick, I tried to grab him and turn the fight into a grappling contest to neutralize his advantage, but he never stayed close enough for me to be successful. Without Roach's initial surprise, Gopher struggled against two opponents tag-teaming him. Instead of helping, Roach had gone after Ankle Biter. For the next few seconds, my entire attention was necessary to defend against a particularly vicious combination from Toad.

I was steadily forced backwards and away from the fighting as I tried to make space to breathe, without luck. Toad pressed his advantage. With no warning, his style switched to the first few stances of the Hyuuga Gentle Fist. Alarmed, I tried to back up too quickly, and a rock under my heel shifted unexpectedly, sending me skidding on my butt. In an instant, he was sitting on my stomach, pinning me to the ground. While it wasn't impossible to copy a taijutsu style by watching it, few people took the time to, and the Hyuuga's style was impossible for anyone but a Hyuuga.

"Yield," he ordered. In a real fight, I would have given up when he told me to. In a spar, I took risks I would never have considered if my life was on the line.

"No," I snapped back and flicked my fingers, a blade of wind cutting deep into his upper arm. He cursed and released one of my arms to retaliate by stabbing a fiery kunai into my right shoulder. He started to back off, and I took the opportunity to plant both of my feet against his chest armor and launch him across the training ground.

Unfortunately, he managed to catch himself. Instead of flying back towards me, he flew at Roach, whose back was turned. I altered the Genjutsu on Ankle Biter as Roach collapsed from a sharp strike to the temple. Ankle Biter went down as Gopher disengaged and landed beside me.

The other three closed ranks and advanced.

"If you can't beat Toad, we can't win, not without Roach."

"Shit."

"We yield," Gopher announced.

I scowled at that.

"Good call. Kichiro, heal and wake up your comrades, please," Sakumo ordered. I hurried over to Roach first, who definitely gained the worst injury to his side. A half hour later, I finished, my chakra at a quarter of its full capacity. All the others were even more exhausted. "Good job today, everyone. Early dinner should be starting soon; you're dismissed for the day. Meet back here tomorrow, same time as this morning. We'll be starting with a tournament."

Everyone was quick to leave, but Sakumo grabbed my arm before I could head over to Nagato.

"You forgot to heal yourself."

I rolled my eyes, but held my hand over my shoulder to heal the cauterized stab wound.

"A lot of people were jockeying to be your mentor in ANBU," Sakumo murmured. "Rat and Panda were only the two properly qualified. I've always valued the input of others, but I never tolerate disobeying orders, especially not in ANBU and I would thrash anyone else within an inch of their life if they tried. One of the reasons you are in ANBU to begin with is because of your track record in following orders and your chronic lack of respect. Though I am unsure of what the Hokage's reasoning was, others have expressed their disapproval of your conduct and they hope that placing you with agents far above your skill to be humbling enough to curb the extent of your negative traits."

I rolled my eyes.

"That means—"

"I need to start behaving or I will be placed with someone who won't give me a choice."

"Until you became the Spirit, you were nearly lost in the system. In ANBU, there isn't enough people for you to be lost in. Your age and specialization make that even more impossible."

"I understand."

"Good. The Hokage wants to finish his discussion from last night with you and Nagato."

I nodded.

"Nii-san, are you okay?" Nagato asked from directly behind me. I flinched, having not noticed his approach. Nagato had too little chakra for me to properly sense. I turned around and pulled him into a hug.

"Later," I murmured in his ear. When I released him, he swayed on his feet. "How are you feeling?" I asked. The boy scowled at me when he realized he wasn't getting a straight answer. I smirked. With a scowl exactly like mine that had to have taken a lot of practice to perfect, I could see why Kyo had referred to him as my doppelganger. "Nagato?" I asked when he didn't make an effort to respond. I rolled my eyes and did diagnostics instead.

"Time to go," Sakumo said and grabbed my arm and Nagato's. A shunshin later, we were standing in front of the Hokage, who looked several years older than he did yesterday. Sakumo left as quickly as he came, leaving Nagato and I alone, a few steps back from the Hokage's desk. I put my arm around the boy's shoulders when he leaned against me.

"Before your mission to Kumo, you point-blank refused to work with Orochimaru. Did you know about the experiments he's been conducting?"

I flinched. "No, I didn't know, but I suspected. It's part of what I'm here to tell you."

"Am I right in thinking that the rest of your explanation will be much more difficult to believe than the previous bit?"

"That is almost certainly the case."

"And the rest will be much more sensitive in nature?"

I shrugged. "The only reason I'm telling you anything is so that you'll take me seriously about Madara. If you don't, I'm just going to announce it to everyone and hope someone does."

"Will you respect my decision on the matter?"

"As long as something is being done and I have no other solutions."

"Do you have a solution already?"

"No."

Nagato wasn't nearly as clingy as Kushina, but he was vulnerable in his exhaustion and he kept close to me, as if I could protect him.

"Have a seat and we'll continue where we left off last night."

Nagato and I sat down shoulder-to-shoulder in the chair off to our left. Well, I sat down and Nagato followed.

"You elaborated on Madara's role and the buildup to the problem but indicated that there was more than Madara's plans in this source you say this comes from. Is that correct?"

"Yes."

"Continue from where you left off."

"Well, eventually, Madara plans to steal all the Bijū, but he doesn't have the resources to do so, and won't for a long time. Anyways, shortly after the battle at the Valley of the End, the First Shinobi World War began. I have no idea if Madara was involved in starting that, but from my history lessons—"

The Hokage raised an eyebrow.

"Okay, from the time I spent in the Konoha library, I figured that it's entirely possible, even if I can't pinpoint what he did and why. During that was, the Shodai died, and the Nidaime died in one of the final battles facing the Kinkaku Force from Kumogakure in order to allow his team and a few others to escape." The Sandaime stiffened. "Your willingness to sacrifice yourself is why the Nidaime chose you as his successor."

"Only six living people know what happened that night and all of them refuse to speak of it," he accused, his voice angry.

I didn't answer that. I knew I had crossed a line, even though I wasn't sure how. I stared at the ground in front of me. I hadn't put my gloves back on from healing, and Nagato started to trace the seal on my palm with his finger.

The Sandaime didn't continue the conversation for a long time. I let the silence stretch on. From the histories and the biography on the Nidaime that I had read, the Nidaime's death had approximately the same impact on Konoha as the assassination of Kennedy had on the United States.

"Continue," he finally ordered.

"It didn't mention anything else until Kushina arrived in Konoha around the time of Uzu's destruction, except, she was one of the very few who had survived it, and the only one to come to Konoha. Nagato and his parents were in Ame at the time, and the only other Uzumaki mentioned would be a kid or teenager right now. Shortly after Kushina became Genin, she was kidnapped by Kumo and rescued by Minato."

"And because Minato-kun had managed by himself, you decided you could do the same thing here."

"I've never claimed to be the sharpest tool in the shed. Either way, in the story, Minato rescued her and the Kyuubi was sealed in her sometime after. In the time between Uzu's destruction and the Third Shinobi World War, Nagato lived in Ame with his parents. Madara planted the Rinnegan in him. Instead of me and Sakumo coming across them and bringing the family to Konoha, two others went and Nagato's parents attacked them to give Nagato time to run. They died, Nagato activated the Rinnegan, and killed the two shinobi." Nagato stiffened against my side. "He wandered around until he met up with two other orphans. After the Sannin faced Hanzō, they encountered the orphans. Jiraiya stayed to teach them to feed themselves, eventually finding out about the Rinnegan and then trained the three of them as ninja to give them an edge in their quest to overthrow Hanzō. Sometime later, it wasn't specific on years at all, the Third Shinobi World War began. During it, a team was sent to destroy the Kannabi bridge.

"The team was basically the next generation of Sannin before they were able to get along. On the mission, the girl was kidnapped by Iwa. It was either orchestrated by Madara or a freak coincidence. The two boys went after her. They managed to rescue her, but one of the boys, he was an Uchiha, was crushed under an Iwa jutsu in the process. He gave his Sharingan to his teammate so he could get the girl out. Instead of dying, Madara rescues the boy and eventually arranges for the girl to die in front of him, causing his spiral into madness. After the war, the Yondaime is appointed and Orochimaru's experiments are uncovered and he is declared a missing-nin. Life goes on, Kushina has a baby like apparently everyone else, and the Uchiha mentioned earlier, driven mad by Madara, who is too old to do squat, took advantage of the seal loosened from the pregnancy to use the Kyuubi to destroy Konoha. She dies, the Yondaime dies sealing the Kyuubi into her son, one of the last four living Uzumaki in the world. Well, Konoha didn't know about the other three.

"Somewhere in that time frame, Nagato, and the two others Jiraiya trained, formed a group called the Akatsuki and confronted Hanzō to try and bring peace to their country. Well, with the help of Danzō, who wasn't called out on his army of robot children—"

"I beg your pardon?"

"Well, you ended up telling Danzō at some point to start handling affairs of Konoha that were too dark to involve the regular forces, including ANBU. He made ROOT and eventually, you know, the whole 'when you look at the dark side, careful you must be, for the dark side looks back' deal became a thing. Anyways, Danzō helped Hanzō kidnap one of their founding members during the confrontation and told Nagato that he had to kill his best friend or the girl would die. Well, said best friend committed suicide on the kunai in Nagato's hand, which drove Nagato insane and warped his ideals of how to achieve peace. Back in Konoha, you were stuck with a position you were too old for and Kushina's son grew up a pariah because of the hard feelings toward the Kyuubi contained in him. You made a law to prevent the adults from telling their children about the Kyuubi and isolating him from his peers, but the kids picked up on their parent's attitudes and it didn't work."

I stifled a yawn.

"The kid grew up and eventually made it his dream to become the Hokage, and still loved the village despite the wrongs it had done him. He was also a chronic prankster, and a damn good one at that, even though he was the dead last at the Academy. He found out about the Kyuubi, graduated, had a botched mission, took the Chuunin exams, went on a training trip with Jiraiya. During that time, Nagato, manipulated by Madara, had finalized his plan to bring peace to the world through force. He turned the Akatsuki into a mercenary organization of S-ranked missing-nin. Their long-term goal was to steal all the Bijū in order to be the most powerful group in the world so no one could oppose them and they could tell everyone to stop fighting or else their village would be wiped off the face of the earth. Well, Kushina's son wasn't going to stand for the targeting of his fellow Jinchuuriki, so one thing led to another and Nagato, calling himself a god by the name of Pein, he was pretty much an insane fanatic at this point because of Madara, basically annihilated the village. Kushina's son fought him, almost lost, but won, and some miracle bullshit made Nagato turn over a new leaf and resurrect everyone in the village, which killed him in the process."

I had to force myself to look straight ahead at the Hokage and ignore Nagato's reactions. Even so, I couldn't ignore his nails digging in to the crook of my elbow or the fact I couldn't feel the tips of my fingers anymore. I pried his hands loose and gave the boy a hug.

"None of that shit is going to happen. Nagato is here, Kushina's not a Jinchuuriki, from what I can tell, Danzō isn't a ruthless, jealous asshole, and the team that gets torn apart are infants, if they've even been born yet, I haven't checked. The people powerful and influential enough for Madara to make useful puppets out of are not in a position to be manipulated."

The Hokage studied me, but I ignored him and stared at the front of his desk, my chin resting on Nagato's head. "If Madara is indeed alive—"

"There's no 'if', he _is_ alive and planning to screw over the world."

" _If_ this is true," he continued, daring me to interrupt and contradict him again, "Beyond keeping Nagato out of his influence, I don't see any feasible way to combat a threat of this nature, and I have no resources to spare in hunting it down, at least not until this war is over."

I scowled, but he was right.

"There are three more things I want to discuss with you, but they will have to wait. You are needed to assist in an experiment to cut losses in ANBU. Kagami will bring you. I need to speak with Nagato-kun about the security measures he will need to implement in his interactions with others and the less people who know, the better."

I didn't get a choice in the matter. Kagami, who apparently had been in the room the entire time, cleared his throat behind me. I was more on edge than I thought because the unexpected noise and the presence at my back automatically sent me reaching for the sticks at my back. The second I lost my grip on Nagato, Kagami pulled me into a shunshin. We landed in an unfamiliar part of ANBU. The entire hallway was filled with soundproof doors. Three of the doors had the seals activated, the only light in the dark corridor.

"What's going on?" I demanded.

"Captive and interrogation training." Kagami answered shortly, his mask on.

"What do you mean by that?"

"You'll see."

He opened one of the doors and pulled me inside behind him, quickly following and snapping it closed behind him.

There were several people standing in front of a piece of glass with seals glowing around the edge. They all turned and bowed out of the way, murmuring 'General-sama', that is, until Sakumo noticed me standing a step behind him and slammed his hand against the seal, cutting off the noise from the other side of the glass. He glared at Kagami, silently demanding an explanation, which he gave, but I wasn't listening. On the other side of the glass was a man dangling by his wrists from the ceiling, clearly being tortured by the team of four prowling around him. As I watched, horrified, he screamed, face twisted in pain.

My stomach churned and I wished I didn't have the experience I did in identifying injuries by sight to avoid wasting time in the field with diagnostics. Everyone except for Sakumo had a textbook open. It was one of the books Kushina had brought back from the Academy on employing and resisting torture and interrogation techniques. Of course, she had been given the watered-down, abridged version that was not-quite as inappropriate for pre-adolescents and I had seen the full version on the shelf of the Konoha library the handful of times Sakumo had brought me into the shinobi section.

I couldn't ban her from the book, but whatever she read in it gave her nightmares for weeks, if not months, and I would wake up in the morning with her shivering against my back.

Distantly, I heard Sakumo speaking, his voice cold. "If you weren't going to respect my decisions in regards to his training, then why did you allow the formality?" He knocked me into the wall on his way out.

I had treated plenty of victims of torture, but that was always conflict between villages, desperation for information driving them to extreme lengths, I could understand. I could understand, even though I abhorred the thought of it, terrorism tactics, like what had been used on Minato, Kushina, and their third teammate, whose name I had forgotten a long time ago, but I recognized the man dangling from the chains. He was one of the young men I had shared breakfast with the day before, Cat. There was a timer on the wall that showed six hours had elapsed since it was set.

The next thing I knew, I was standing beside Cat's unconscious body, healing on autopilot.

* * *

 _Author's note: If you haven't checked out the sidestories in a while, there are a few more chapters up. Anyway, I have a collection of sidestories from the perspective of people who were treated by or observed Kichiro during his tour around the front lines. I don't know which to put out first. So, everyone pick a letter: C, D, E, or F._


	48. Chapter 48

I wasn't fully aware of my surroundings for a long time after that. My thoughts had shut down rather than try and process the facts I had been unexpectedly presented with. I was a pessimistic idealist, if that made sense. I knew that most, if not all, the ninja I worked with would commit heinous acts without remorse. I knew Konoha's enemies were capable of worse. My morality clashed horribly with the shinobi philosophy and I was fully aware of that fact. I'd been out on the front lines during what was most definitely the worst part of the war. I'd seen the effects of it in all their morbid glory, but I had never seen any of it firsthand.

I already had a difficult day. Nagato had almost died attempting a jutsu I put him up to. Sakumo had forced Kyo and several others to train while injured, hell, he had deliberately harmed them as motivation. Physically, I was tired. My chakra was at ten percent of its full capacity. I was emotionally exhausted from having to put up a tough front to the other ANBU kids, and meeting with the Hokage had only compounded that exhaustion.

I had followed Kagami thinking I would only be there in case a jutsu attempt or spar got out of hand, thinking I could sit down and watch something as a thinly veiled attempt from the Hokage to talk to Nagato without me influencing the conversation. I was in no way prepared for, or able to cope with, what came instead.

I wasn't even sure my voice still worked. I felt like if I opened my mouth, the taste of bile would become more than just a bad taste. Somehow, I found myself laying on my bunk, my face a few inches away from the wall.

"Nii-san?" Nagato asked when he returned.

"Let him be, Nagato-chan," Roach advised. "Everyone's first real day of training is meant to shock them, and everyone deals with it differently. If he's still like that in the morning, you can start to worry."

"But I'm not—"

"You're not technically in ANBU yet. When I joined, I was a month or two older than you and afterwards, they upped the requirements, which you haven't quite met yet."

"Why does it have to be a shock?"

"You ask too many questions. Normally, the first day just stretches the recruit to their breaking point, but it's extremely hard to do to a Jinchuuriki, and not entirely safe, so they pushed him a different way. I don't know what it was, just that his reaction surprised everyone."

"But why?"

"ANBU isn't nice, the sooner you learn that, the better. Your beloved 'nii-san' doesn't fit in this place, he's too damn—well, I'm not entirely sure how to describe it. For the time being, things will be extremely unpleasant for him whenever you're not around. It's probably too much to ask for him to become like the rest of us, but until he's able to watch us at our worst without his entire being rebelling against it, he's going to be in hell."

"But _why_? Why do they want to make Nii-san like that?"

"Because here, his gentleness doesn't enamor the people around him like it does at your home. Here, restraint is a weakness, a weakness that will get him accidentally killed by one of our own in training or out in the field if it continues for long enough. Look, kid, you got what it takes to stay here. You might even become a full agent before him, if he ever does, as soon as you realize that Kichiro isn't perfect and you're a lot better than you think. I'm betting that your nii-san is going to wash out as soon as he's no longer needed as a medic."

"Nii-san isn't weak!" Nagato exploded.

"In time, he probably will become the best doctor in the village. Because of his intelligence and the way he treats you, he'll make a brilliant teacher. He has to be much stronger than he seems if he's able to harness the Kyuubi like he did today in your defense. In raw skill, he's good for his age and level of experience. If it wasn't for the fact that he is the most pathetic shinobi I've had the misfortune of meeting, I think he could be stronger than me without trying. He had several opportunities to take down Kyo in his first match, but he blatantly ignored them. He had to be _ordered_ to attack. I can't trust someone to watch my back when they're unwilling to properly defend themselves, no one else can afford it, and you shouldn't tolerate it either."

"You're wrong! You're wrong and Nii-san will prove it to you!"

Roach was mature enough not to argue the point as Nagato crawled into the bed beside me.

"Nii-san? Are you awake?" Nagato asked as Roach turned out all the lights except the one in the bathroom and climbed into the top bunk.

I didn't answer. I didn't sleep. Several hours later, after Nagato had fallen asleep curled at my back, I rolled over and hugged him tightly. It wasn't fair to Nagato to be used as some kind of emotional crutch, but he was solid, warm, he was the reason I wasn't marching to Kagami's office and quitting, damn the consequences. I didn't sleep that night; I just lay there staring at the bathroom light. The next day, training went similarly to the day before, except a different man was in charge. Nagato and I faced several pairs of opponents. We lost every time, and when elemental training began, I sat beside Nagato while his sensei taught him the basics of water since the primary teacher for the day couldn't help me. I somewhat listened, pulling water from the ground between my feet and making a thin, foot-tall pillar to my hand. I was pulled out of training three times to heal agents who had very obviously been tortured.

It seemed like a heavy blanket had fallen over everything. I barely managed to eat a few bites at lunch and I had completely skipped breakfast, but I wasn't hungry. The idea of dinner didn't even cross my mind. I had started the day with about half my usual reserves and ended it on the brink of chakra exhaustion. I didn't say a word all day, only nodding or shaking my head when I was addressed. Nagato tried to engage me in a conversation several times, but I just listened indifferently, unable to muster the energy to respond.

I didn't sleep that night either.

In the morning, I left before Nagato woke and went to Kagami's office, firmly dismissing the dark flickers of cloth out of the corner of my eyes as nothing more than my imagination. He handed over the stack of files for the people I would be seeing that day on a metal cart. He looked like he wanted to say something, but I left before he could. I had been working in the hospital long enough that I could deal with patients without thinking about it. No one else seemed to be especially interested in talking, so I only said the bare minimum, my voice hoarse. It was almost midnight before I finished the twelve people assigned for the day. Seven times, I was interrupted to heal agents who had endured torture during whatever sick training was happening.

I had less than half my reserves when I started the day and didn't end up any better off than the day before. The paranoia was becoming increasingly difficult to ignore, and I barely managed to keep it all compressed in a tight knot in my throat. It felt like it could explode into an earth-rattling scream at any second, but I remained determined to ignore it. When I arrived at Kagami's office to return the files Sakumo was in there and the door hadn't quite latched.

"Why can't you get it through your thick head that Kichiro is never going to live up to your ideal of a perfect shinobi? This psychological _torment_ is only going to create more problems for the boy, it won't solve anything!"

"You know as well as I do what the council decided."

"The council is a bunch of small-minded fools, of course they're going to try and get back at the boy for calling them out on it."

"Those are my former teammates you're insulting."

"Do you even have a reason for what you're doing?" There was a moment of silence before Sakumo continued coldly. "You don't do you? Kichiro almost released the Kyuubi once already, and you know damn well he would have succeeded, right under the Hokage's nose."

"He'll be too busy trying to figure out how to deal with it to ask why or fight back."

"If you believe that, you're grossly underestimating him."

"He's only eleven."

"Four years ago, I thought, 'he's only seven, he'll be easy to manipulate' but he shook off manipulations that had ensnared Jōnin. People ten times his age fell prey to many of the things I tried on him and he shook it off like it was _nothing_. Most of the time, I wasn't even sure he noticed! Hell, you watched half of it and admitted you weren't entirely sure how he did it. He was _seven_ at the time, and didn't have a demon sealed inside of him. Now, we are absolutely certain the boy is in contact with and occasionally makes use of assistance from the beast, but no one knows to what extent, yet you're treating him worse than an animal!"

"You're overreacting, Sakumo. He may be intelligent and talented, but he's nowhere near the level you're implying."

Sakumo snorted. "Overreacting? The boy made a seal to contain the Hachibi when he was eight years old and destruction is much, much easier than creation. He used Mito-sama's writings to help, and he is one of the few that has access to her work. He has constant access to the seal. If this keeps up, it's only a matter of time before he turns on us—threatening his family will only work for so long."

"He's not—"

"Believe me, the boy doesn't make idle threats. You can't argue the fact that I know him best. _If_ you keep this up, he _will_ snap, it's only a matter of time. Tell me, are you willing to risk your daughter in his rampage? The Hokage gained another son last night, are you sure he's willing to risk that child? I'm sure as hell not willing to risk Kakashi. Do you want to be the one to tell Jiraiya-san he's going to be the one to give his life to seal the Kyuubi into his student right after the girl loses her brother? That kind of tragedy does not make a stable Jinchuuriki, and she'll be just as likely to turn on us as he is right now, perhaps even more so. Kichiro is the most level-headed Uzumaki you've ever met, you said it yourself. Also, the girl is smarter than she lets on, much smarter. Even if she couldn't prove it by herself, she figured out Orochimaru was behind the disappearance of her clan mate, which occurred nearly two years before, through a visitor's log and hearsay. Do you really think she won't realize who drove her brother insane?"

"You're walking on thin ice."

"Thin ice, my ass. You know I'm right, so don't even try it."

"It looks like Kichiro has rubbed off on you more than anyone thought."

"If this is the kind of shit he's always fighting, I'm not sure it's a bad thing!"

A long silence followed that.

"We're monitoring the situation closely. If it gets out of hand, you can say I told you so, and I will let you have free reign—"

"At that point, the damage would already be done! I won't be getting my student back; I'll be getting a body!"

"Calm down, Sakumo, you're not a child anymore." Kagami retorted firmly. "We're trying to do what's best for the boy—"

"Don't lie to me, Sensei. The boy has undermined, challenged, and embarrassed you, the council, and the Hokage. Making him suffer is not what's best for him, it's your revenge, the only revenge you can take because of his position and the fact he had the common courtesy to act behind closed doors."

"What do you propose I do instead?"

"Take him out of the ANBU program!"

"That is impossible. You've shown yourself to be unable to keep your tongue in check. From now on, my decision is final and this conversation is over. If you cannot control yourself, I advise you to not return to Headquarters until you can."

Sakumo didn't even see me as he stormed past. I waited until he had vanished around the corner before pushing the cart through the door. I barely took two steps in before turning my back and leaving without even acknowledging Kagami. I didn't even look up from the floor. I didn't have the energy or the desire to think of anything to say.

"Kichiro!" Kagami called after me, but I ignored him, shuffling down the hall. I decided it was shock. I had been in shock for the past two days. I felt like I should be able to break myself out of it, but I had no idea how. It drained my energy, made my vision blurry, and my chakra more difficult to control.

At some point, I had taken a wrong turn and found myself somewhere I didn't recognize. I tried to retrace my steps, but only found myself even more lost. My eyes burned.

Half-blinded, I continued to wander around, hoping to find something familiar, not that I could see much of anything with tears blurring my vision and only the occasional light to break up long swathes of darkness.

My feet ached and the effects of going without sleep for the third night in a row were beginning to set in.

When I couldn't walk any longer, I sat down with my back to the wall, rubbing my eyes.

(-_-)

I wasn't entirely sure how long I sat there. My butt went numb, eventually followed by my knees aching from being pulled so tightly to my chest before they went numb as well. I was cold, the stone walls and floor sapped any heat they could find, it certainly wasn't summertime.

"We found him!" A woman announced loudly. A cold, wet dog nose nudged the side of my head, immediately followed by a canine wet willy. I scrubbed at my ear as the woman crouched in front of me and checked my pulse. "Atsuko, how long has he been here?"

The dog whined in my ear.

"If course I know he got lost, all the newbies get lost at least once. How long has he been here?"

I flinched as Atsuko barked in my ear.

"Just answer the damn question, you cat. He's not going to get in trouble for it."

Another whine.

"Ten hours? That can't be right, he would have started moving, or at least slept, if that was the case."

A growl.

"I do keep a bead on what's going on around here."

Another whine.

"Hush, you know better than to say things like that."

A yip.

"Yes, but I don't know why he's not responding. Come on, the General will know what to do."

She pulled me to my feet, but when my legs would barely hold my weight, she put my arms around her neck and picked me up like a kid.

"Damn, he's lighter than Tsume-chan!"

She held my head against her shoulder before bouncing through the halls, jarring my teeth at every step.

"Yo! General-sama! Atsuko and I found him. He was lost downstairs and is in pretty bad shape. How hard have you been working him? If you're doing limits training, someone screwed up and I don't think he'll be fit for much of anything for the next few days."

She set me on my feet and backed away. I tilted precariously to one side, and someone grabbed my arm to keep me upright. "Damnit, why didn't anyone notice he was missing sooner?" Kagami demanded, shaking me slightly. I just let my head droop in exhaustion. "Panda, take him to his room and tell his brother he needs rest and something to eat. Rat, why the hell didn't you say anything when he didn't show up to training? Damn it all, I don't have time for this! I need all active agents with more than three years of experience ready to mobilize in ten minutes! Everyone with one or two years of experience are taking over the ANBU role in the village defenses and operating per usual. Everyone with less than a year are to remain in headquarters. Roach, if I catch you trying that suicide jutsu again, I'm whipping your ass until it bleeds and then you can sit on it for the next year. Evil trio, you're with me. Everyone else, standard teams of four. Get moving!" Kagami bellowed.

Someone picked me up and hurried out of wherever we were. I hadn't opened my eyes since I sat down in that hallway. I was pretty sure I had been awake for over eighty hours straight, but no matter how hard I tried or how much I wanted to, I couldn't sleep.

"Nii-san?" Nagato asked hopefully as I was carried through the door. "What did you do to Nii-san? Where—"

"You'll leave the matter alone if you know what's good for you, kid," the person carrying me groused. "You're in charge of taking care of him, runt, he needs rest and food."

"But—" Nagato began as the man laid me on the bed.

"Start by making him as comfortable as you can, you might want to warm him up too, his skin's like ice. Don't worry, kid, you'll do fine."

Nagato pulled me into a sitting position, sniffling, and took off the armor on my chest and arms, quickly followed by the rest of my armor and weapons, dropping them in a pile on the floor.

"What did they do to you, Nii-san?" Nagato asked and sat down beside me, curling against my side, arms locked around my torso.

"I'll be fine," I promised him, barely intelligible. Suddenly, he stiffened, and like the breaking of a Genjutsu, the fog over everything lifted It took me precious seconds to realize that there actually had been a Genjutsu.

 ** _Finally! You've been in that damn Genjutsu for days! That bastard managed to put one on you and I barely managed to avoid the others!_** The Kyuubi grumbled in annoyance.

The lethargy and mental fogginess wasn't shock. My normal reaction to seeing what I had would have been to put a stop to it by whatever means necessary. A Genjutsu had forced me into a passive state. I hated Genjutsu. Likely, my inability to look up, refusal to open my eyes, and the difficulty in keeping track of my surroundings was the Kyuubi trying to prevent another Genjutsu from taking hold. The fact that he had that much control over my body and emotions, little as it was, made me slightly nervous, but right now, it had probably saved me a lot of grief.

There was someone sitting at my desk several feet away, I could feel them. Nagato pressed the hand signal for Uchiha into my lower back and I somehow just knew it was Madara. My heart raced and I felt naked with only two senbon taped to the inside of each of my forearms to avoid someone accidentally slitting my wrists. Besides that, my weapons and armor were all in the locker across the room, which Madara was conveniently in the way of. My sticks were on the desk beside him. I quickly disrupted every iota of chakra in my body to make sure there was no Genjutsu.

"My name is Uchiha Madara. I won't harm you or your brother, child, no matter what happens. There will be no jutsu or blows of any kind exchanged unless they come from you. I swear it on my eyes, which are currently in your possession. I only want to speak with you." He assured me. His voice was soft, grandfatherly. I wanted to believe him. I shook my head sharply, shaking off another Genjutsu with the sound of a popped joint.

I pulled the bandages off my head and quickly rolled it up before tossing it to him. I heard him catch it out of the air. "Put that over your Sharingan."

To my surprise, he obliged. I pulled on a scrap of Kyuubi chakra that I was capable of and used it to watch him wrap the cloth over his eyes.

 _I want you to close yourself off to everything right now. Madara shouldn't be able to touch you, even if he wanted to, at least, not without access to the seal. It will be your job to break me out of whatever Genjutsu he manages to stick on me as soon as you can._

 ** _For once you're making sense, runt, go ahead._**

I checked Nagato for a Genjutsu before looking up at Madara. He had propped a kama against the desk beside him, an orange mask with black markings dangling off the handle. His hair only had white streaks amid the black and the cloth covered his eyes. He wore the traditional Uchiha clothing. He had to be at least sixty.

"I gave you my name, I do believe it would be polite of you to introduce yourself."

"You are a known traitor and are currently trespassing in a restricted area. You are not a guest here. I am currently breaking the laws of this village by tolerating your presence."

His head tilted to the side as he considered me carefully. "You are much more knowledgeable than your brother."

I didn't respond. He leaned back in the chair and picked up one of my sticks from the desk. It took him two tries to find them, but I knew it was an act to try and make me feel as though I had an advantage. Any halfway decent shinobi had the lay of the room memorized so they could still maneuver in case their vision was impaired at any point. He tested their weight.

"A very long time ago, I believe I was around your age, my father warned me," his voice adopted a lower register and his back straightened as he imitated a man who died before Kichiro's parents were born. "'Son, the most dangerous person on the battlefield won't carry a blade, he won't look intimidating or strong. He'll stand there because he has no other choice. He'll stand there and won't shed a drop of blood. If he's not on your side, you're fighting for the wrong cause.'" Madara paused dramatically.

"I can see your attempt to stoke my ego for what it is. It won't work. What do you want?" I interrupted bluntly.

He hesitated, but changed tactics. "What do you want?"

"Irrelevant. Why are you here? What do you want? Tell me plain and simple, I won't listen to anything else."

"Am I correct in thinking these are made from one of the trees Hashirama grew? They are much more powerful than you can imagine, Kichiro-kun." He swung the stick around experimentally, but remained in his seat.

"If you continue to refuse to give me a straight answer, I will declare this conversation over and resort to procedure when confronting a missing-nin."

He fell silent, as if trying to determine how serious I was. "I want many things. I want my brother back. I want to fight Hashirama again, both of us in our prime, the height of our power. I want peace for what's left of this broken world."

"Then you are a foolish old man who never learned that fairytales are just stories to make the rest of the world seem a little less dark and scary."

I knew I was throwing a serious wrench in Madara's plan, but I knew he respected strength and enjoyed a challenge. I just hoped I presented the right amount of both to keep him interested but not violent.

"Insulting me is not a particularly wise course of action."

"Then you have misjudged my character. I do not appreciate pleasantries and lies, whether they be to oneself or another."

"What if there was a way for me to bring peace to this world? What if there was a way for me to see my brother again? What if there was a way for me face my rival again as an equal?"

"Then I'll tell you that you're deluded or most likely have been grossly manipulated."

"Why do you suggest manipulated?"

"If you really believe what you're saying, you either had to have worked this out for yourself or someone told you the answer. Everyone believes you to be dead. The chances of you surviving by yourself after your battle with the Shodai are as close to zero as you can get. The report written by Uzumaki Mito on your fight with the Shodai is available to Academy students and required reading for those in the medical program. It details the injuries you sustained, and the cause of death was declared to be chakra exhaustion. The only way for you to survive would require shinobi-grade medical assistance, and even that would have been a five percent chance of success with the techniques available in that day."

"That is quite the deduction." He flung the stick at me faster than I could track. I tried to catch it, but I knew before it even left Madara's hand that I wouldn't be able to react fast enough, but I was determined not to flinch. The handle of the stick slapped against my palm, jarring my entire arm. I couldn't stop its momentum as it slammed into my chest, but managed to keep my grip on it.

"Aw, shucks," I deadpanned, doing my best to remain unfazed, even though my stomach churned, my heart hammered, and I had no idea whether to interpret his action as an attack or a test. "So, which is it? Are you a deluded madman or a manipulated traitor?"

"You're an interesting kid."

"You're full of shit." He flung my other stick at Nagato, who didn't even see it coming. I reinforced my arm with chakra as I caught it. The extra effort barely managed to stop Nagato from getting hit while I kept my grip on my stick.

"May I ask you some questions?" He had the audacity to act.

"I don't owe you any answers." I stood up and flexed my arms, my patience thin and my fear very close to destroying my façade.

"Then all I ask is that you hear me out."

Nagato's hands tightened around my arm as if I needed to be held back. "You have invaded one of the few places I felt safe. Your assurances that you will do no harm mean jack shit to me. You are a shinobi, a missing-nin, and shinobi lie, especially missing-nin. If your intentions were pure, you would have approached me on neutral ground, unarmed, and without Genjutsu. You would not have performed an unauthorized organ transplant on one of my family members, nor would you have first approached my little brother, who is not yet able to speak for himself according to the customs of both the Uchiha and Uzumaki clans, as well as Konoha law. If you want me to listen, there will be conditions. First, this conversation will take place at a later date, in a public place, I will arrange for security seals if you believe them to be necessary. Second, you will be unarmed and your Sharingan will be temporarily sealed. Third, the Hokage of this village, whose laws and authority I am subject to, will be fully aware of this meeting. Finally, there will be no Genjutsu, disguises, or deception of any kind. Both of us will arrive voluntarily and alone, and will leave in the same manner. If you want me to listen, that is the only way I will. You may not contact any of my family in any way. Until such time as those conditions are met, any further communication between us will be through the foreign communications department of Konoha."

I tightened my grip on my sticks but it didn't stop them from shaking. Even though he was blindfolded, I knew that he could tell how much his presence was affecting me.

"You are adamant in this."

"The greatest trick the devil pulled was convincing the world that he doesn't exist," I responded. "I will not be complacent with that."

"I will make the necessary arrangements."

He stood up and turned around, replacing the makeshift blindfold with his mask, picked up the kama, and walked out the door.

* * *

 _Author's note: Greetings from Milwaukee!_

 _I will be spending the end of this week and the beginning of next week in Washington D.C. attending the March for Life and visiting some of the memorials to honor our fallen servicemen. I want to thank all of the soldiers, both veterans and active duty, who make this country a safer place to live and preserve our freedom from those who seek to pervert and destroy it._


	49. Chapter 49 - Part 8

Needless to say, I was trembling from the encounter for several hours afterwards and compulsively checking the room for traps. I could tell it upset Nagato, but every few minutes I had to check both of us for Genjutsu. I knew part of it was psychosis from the lack of sleep, but even though Nagato tried to make me settle down, he even set up extremely dangerous security seals to ease my mind, I couldn't rest, nor would I allow him to move out of arm's reach.

It wasn't fair to Nagato that I couldn't cooperate with him. He begged, pleaded, argued, and cried himself to exhaustion, before finally threatening to knock me out if I refused to calm down. Shortly after, he managed to stick a paralysis seal on the back of my elbow without me noticing. I bonelessly collapsed back onto the bed and Nagato raced to retrieve my medic pouch and emptied it, sifting through the contents until he found one of the sedatives I carried and forced the pill down my throat. When the sedative started to have an effect, Nagato removed the paralysis tag.

For the average kid my size and weight, it was the correct dose to knock them out. For an Uzumaki Jinchuuriki, it was barely enough to calm me down, and would wear off within the hour.

I stopped jumping up to redo security sweeps every few minutes and Nagato was able to persuade me that no Genjutsu could have escaped the repeated, detailed checks. Either someone had told Nagato how to handle a person like me panicking, or he knew me better than I thought, which was frightening. He had me sharpen every blade in the room, clean and oil my bokken and sticks at least three times, pack and unpack my medic pouch several dozen times, repair several tears in my ANBU and Chuunin uniform, then the even more numerous tears in his uniforms, itemize everything we owned in the room, then organize it by frequency of use before repacking it, and practice putting on and taking off my ANBU armor, among several other things.

When I was calm enough to remain sitting in the bed to continue packing and unpacking my medic pouch without prompting, Nagato laid his head in my lap and watched. "What are those?" He asked suddenly.

"What are what?"

He lifted his head and picked up a spiral-bound notebook with a triangle drawn on the front. Originally, there were about a hundred pages in it, but several had been torn out.

"Those are bandages."

"But you heal everything with chakra!"

"When I have time, yes, and normally, I have time, but if I'm in the middle of a battle, then I might not, so I bandage it so they can either continue fighting or get to a medic that has the time to heal the injury."

"Why is it labelled with a triangle?"

"It's the shape of the bandage."

"That seems silly."

I rolled my eyes and opened the book to reveal a small storage seal filling up the first page. I unsealed one of the bandages, fingering the stiff fabric. "I bet I can wrap anything you can name with this. Pick a non-lethal injury someone can get on the battlefield that would require treatment."

Nagato smirked. "A busted knee."

"Severity?"

Nagato thought for a moment. "Compound fracture, the joint destroyed."

"Gimme your knee."

Nagato smirked and sat up, sticking his foot in my face. He winced as I wrapped his knee in less than thirty seconds.

"If you busted up you knee, no matter how badly, as long as it was still there, obviously, you'd be able to make it off the field with this." I untied the bandage. "Next."

"Stab wound, shoulder."

I pulled him into a sitting position and in even less time wrapped his shoulder. "You could go back to battle, though I wouldn't advise it." I untied the bandage. "Next."

The cycle continued with me bandaging every injury he could think of, some were exceptionally creative, until Nagato released a jaw-cracking yawn that amazed me.

"It's time for you to go to sleep," I announced.

"Not until you do too," Nagato snapped.

"I've been trained to stay up for nearly a week on end with minimal loss in cognitive function and—"

"I don't care."

I sighed and repacked the medic pouch, tying the bandage around Nagato's head like a bandanna before he could stop me. As exhausted as he was, it wasn't difficult, but he escaped as soon as I finished. I doubted he slept much the night before. "I'll be fine going without sleep, you won't."

"Please stop trying to reassure me. I don't wanna have to be taken care of anymore!"

"Nagato—" I reached out to grab his shoulder, but he slapped my hand away.

"I don't wanna be the one who has to be protected."

"You've got a bit of growing up to do before that happens."

"I don't want—"

"You want to be a shinobi, fine." I interrupted sharply. "You want to protect people, fine. All of that takes time, Nagato. You're six years old and whether you like it or not, there's not much you can do."

"I want to do something!"

"I'll tell you what, you go to sleep and I'll wake you up early and we can go to the training ground and I'll teach you anything you want to learn as long as its within my capabilities, okay?"

"You have to sleep too!"

I sighed. "It's not that simple, but I'll try." I set the medic pouch on the floor beside the bed and flopped down on my back rubbing my face. "Since you're the only one that can touch those seals, go turn the light off."

"Can we leave the light on?" Nagato asked in a small voice. He wasn't afraid of the dark, but he was six years old. When I was six, I slept with the lights on whenever I had a bad day.

"Sure, Nagato," I murmured, not moving as I stared up at the underside of Roach's bed.

(-_-)

I spent the entire night with Nagato using my stomach as a pillow and trying to decipher the security seals he had stuck to the bed above us. Several times, I dozed briefly, but woke with an unpleasant jerk. Six hours later, I prodded Nagato until he woke up. "It's almost six in the morning," I told him when he blearily opened his eyes. "Do you still want to go train?"

Nagato jumped up, fully alert before I finished the sentence. "Yes, please!"

The security seals fell a few seconds later. Within three minutes, Nagato was ready to go.

"Come on, Nii-san!"

I had barely managed to put on half my armor.

"Breakfast is at seven, so if we hurry, we'll have an entire hour for you to teach me cool stuff! Come on! Hurry!"

"Easy, Nagato, there's no use wasting your energy."

"You're talking like an old man."

"I am not old!" I snapped. Physically, I was only eleven. Mentally, I was sure I was somewhere between thirty-three and thirty-five. That was most certainly not old. I finished putting on my armor and carefully attached my sticks to the small of my back.

"Then hurry up! I want you to teach me that cool Taijutsu move where you spin and end up behind you opponent and then you go _wham_ and knock them unconscious from behind!"

"You have to be more specific, I know a lot of moves like that."

"The one where you don't stop spinning and no one can hit you."

"That's an entire Taijutsu style, not a move. How do you know about that anyways?"

"Sensei told me that I had to ask you or Sakumo if I wanted to learn it because he didn't know it. He doesn't know many water jutsus either."

"I see." I secured my medic pouch beneath my sticks and then my senbon on my thigh.

"Are you going to teach me?" Nagato begged.

"Be patient." I finally strapped the bokken to the center of my back and my miscellaneous supply pouch to the back of my left hip. "Now, I'm ready."

Nagato cheered and grabbed my wrist, dragging me out the door and through the halls at a surprising speed until we reached the training ground. "Teach me, teach me!" Nagato chanted.

"Alright, alright. Calm down. You're asking me to teach you an entire Taijutsu style, this is going to take time, understand? Probably months."

Nagato nodded.

"Good. Let me ask you, have you ever tried to slash a leaf out of the air?" I picked up a small deciduous leaf from the ground and tossed it in the air, handing Nagato the bokken and backing away. "Try and knock it out of the air."

Nagato swung at the leaf, but the air current around the bokken caused the leaf to twist around the wooden training blade. He frowned and tried until the leaf hit the ground.

"It's much harder than it sounds. This Taijutsu style was based off that and it's extremely effective when you're unarmed or facing someone with a longer blade or is physically bigger than you. In theory, if your opponent can't touch you, your opponent can't win. It's called the Spinning Leaf and not very offensive, but you can easily make up for that with Ninjutsu. What Taijutsu style do you already know?"

"Kushina taught me the Uzumaki style and Sensei taught me the Academy style and he's trying to teach me something called Gōken, but I don't like it."

I frowned. Sakumo taught me the style but recommended that I shouldn't use it, mostly because it required more strength and physical power than I would likely ever have. "Well, both of those are aggressive styles and are extremely different than this one, so you'll be starting from scratch. The quickest way to learn how a style is supposed to work is to fight it. Just to be clear, this is for learning purposes only, so it's not about the fight, it's about the style." I settled into the starting stance. "Whenever you're ready."

The boy wasted no time in attacking, carefully analyzing my movements. I let him set the speed of the fight, even letting him land several hits through weak points in the style, unfortunately, said hits were the necessary sacrifice to let me spin behind him and strike his back in four different places that sent him to his knees gasping for breath, even though I was only at a quarter of my full speed and strength. I tapped his neck with a kunai before backing away a few steps to let him recover.

"Don't you get dizzy?" Nagato whined, standing up and rolling his shoulders.

"No."

"I still feel dizzy just watching."

"That's the point." I let him test the limits until I had used the main katas against him. "Now you have a feel for what it's supposed to look like, are you ready to start learning for yourself?"

He nodded and I demonstrated the starting position. Nagato mimicked me as I walked through the kata. His stances were extremely rough, but it was much easier to teach the finer points when he already knew the basics. Maybe I was just aping Sakumo's style of teaching.

The warm-up spar had taken about ten minutes, so I spent the next forty teaching and correcting the first kata. Nagato picked it up impossibly quickly, and the last ten minutes were entirely focused on making his muscles memorize it, not just his brain. In the last two minutes, Nagato's sensei appeared behind me.

Even though I was in control of myself, I had not calmed down from the encounter with Madara. The second I registered a presence behind me, I pulled my sticks out faster than I knew I could and attacked. A cane intercepted the strikes, but I was already ducking underneath a strike I thought was coming and sweeping at the stalker's legs. The man, unbalanced by the fact he only had one leg, fell hard on his butt and I pinned him, my hand around his throat. I barely managed to pull back what would have been a killing blow as I recognized him.

"Easy, kid, I'm not going to hurt you," he placated. I took special care in confirming his chakra signature before helping him up.

"Sorry," I forced out, obviously unrepentant.

"My bad," he responded, smirking. "I ought to know better than to sneak up on a shinobi, even one reputed to be as soft as you."

"Sensei!" Nagato interrupted my smart response. "Did you see Nii-san teaching me? Did you? Did you? He's the best Nii-san ever! Much better than Kushina-chan. She's a mean teacher, always whacking me on the head, but Nii-san is awesome! I almost got that Taijutsu I was asking you about!"

"One kata is not an entire style, Nagato," I interrupted, but Nagato ignored me, animatedly acting out his story.

"Earlier, he showed me how it was supposed to look and he was all whoosh! And then bam! Bam! And even though he was going _really_ slow, I didn't even see—"

His sensei stuffed a ration bar in Nagato's mouth. "Yes, I've been watching this entire time. Good job, both of you." He handed me two ration bars. "I don't believe we've been formally introduced. I'm Matsushita Katashi, formerly known as Mouse. Most recruits call me Shita-sensei. I would like to officially thank you for beginning the program to incorporate the retired forces into teaching roles, Kichiro-kun."

"You're welcome," I responded and shook his hand. He gestured for us all to sit, and I did so before beginning to inhale the ration bars.

"There are a lot of rumors about you. How many of them are true?"

I paused halfway through the first ration. "I'm not entirely familiar with the rumors you're talking about."

"My personal favorite is that you are sent by Inari and here for some ambiguous purpose that can't be decided on."

I choked and barely managed to swallow before I started coughing. "There is no way to respond to that without offending or terrifying someone, so I won't share my opinion on the matter."

"The most popular one is that you're the reincarnation of the Sage of Six Paths."

I made the mistake of taking a bite out of the second ration before he finished the statement. Nagato pounded on my back as I choked again. "That one, I assure you, is false."

"Then you are a reincarnation of the Shodai."

"Also false." I swallowed the last of the rations.

"Are you the Kyuubi hell-bent on destroying us?"

I winced. "No, we are two separate entities."

"What about the most likely: you're a man who is reborn as an infant every time he dies."

"You're going to keep asking until you figure it out, aren't you?"

"You're a smart one." He smirked.

"You made a bet, didn't you?"

He was at least moderately surprised. "There is a bet. I abstained."

"And how many people are watching right now?"

"About thirty or so."

A collective groan came from the nearest wall. A crowd of people emerged from beneath a Genjutsu.

"What was the bet?"

"Everyone except Hatake bet in their favorite theory. He bet that you would figure out the ruse before the rumors could be confirmed."

"Exactly how much did he win?"

Nagato's sensei winced. "Enough money and favors to last him the rest of his life."

"Almost all of ANBU now owes him something, don't they?"

"Yes, but it's not the first time."

I turned to the freshly revealed group. "Good to know someone in this godforsaken world has a brain instead of a rock in their head. Just because I don't relish destruction doesn't mean I'm incompetent."

Matsushita winced. I stood up sharply.

"Thanks for the food." I marched away.

"Nii-san is the best ninja ever!" Nagato announced, angry. I was surprised he had understood the implications of the conversation. "You're supposed to be his comrades, but you're just—"

"Leave it, Nagato," I snapped before slamming the door behind me, only to find my path blocked by Sakumo. I tried to step around him, but he held out a hand to stop me.

"You're supposed to be training."

"Apparently, I'm an incompetent fool who can't be trusted to see through a basic deception tactic. Why should I train when I'm never going to go out in the field again?"

"Plenty of bets have been made on this topic before, Kichiro."

I turned on my heel and tried to walk in the opposite direction, but Sakumo grabbed the back of my armor. The second his hand touched me, I spun and attempted to strike the back of his elbow. He caught my wrist without a problem.

"This isn't about the bet. Something happened."

"What makes you come to that conclusion?"

"Normally, you'd be demanding a cut of the winnings and you would _never_ try and attack me outside of a spar, not even to make a point."

"Let me go."

"All of ANBU have explicit orders not to harass you after you almost lost control in the spar with Kyo."

I scowled.

"Kichiro?"

I didn't know why I wasn't telling Sakumo about Madara's visit. "I want to go home."

"That's not the problem either."

The door slammed open and Nagato ran out, crying into his hands. "Nagato," I breathed. Sakumo released me and I ran forward to kneel in front of him. "It's alright," I murmured as Nagato buried his face in my shoulder and hugged me tightly. I quietly reassured him for the next minute until the crying eased.

"They're all a bunch of traitors!" Nagato said into my shoulder. "They said you were going to go crazy and die and they would relish putting you down like an animal." That escalated impossibly quickly, it had barely been two minutes since I stormed out.

"I'm not gonna die, Nagato, I promise."

"If they had a say in it, you would already be dead."

"Well, they don't have a say in it."

"But—"

"They're just scared, okay?"

"They're still—"

"I know, it's no excuse, but that's how people are. It's going to be alright."

Nagato hiccupped, but after a minute, nodded. He pulled away, rubbing his eyes. I gently dried his face of tears.

A knot of cold fury coiled in my stomach as I noticed the beginning of a bruise on Nagato's temple. That bruise wasn't from me. I was careful not to allow any expression to show on my face as I pulled off my glove and healed it. When we were sparring earlier, I had landed several hits, but none were strong enough to leave a mark, only cause pain.

"Feeling better now?"

He nodded.

"Glad to hear it," Sakumo snapped. "Both of you, get in here."

Nagato winced and I stood to obey. I didn't miss the way he took up a position off my left shoulder as if he was expecting a fight.

* * *

 _Author's note: Happy Birthday, Minato! Also, I'm so close to 900 followers and 700 favorites! You guys are AMAZING! Thank you so much!_


	50. Chapter 50

To my surprise, the training ground was empty except for Matsushita. "Everyone else was given their own assignments." Sakumo explained. "Kichiro, standard procedure dictates that every trainee is required to undertake a full assessment of abilities upon joining ANBU. Yours and Nagato's assessment has been scheduled for today. There is both a written and practical portion. Matsushita will be administering the written portion and I will be administering the practical."

I shrugged. "Fine."

"Your objective it to attempt to take this necklace from around my neck." Sakumo held up a rope with several knots in it and put it around his neck. "Try to use every skill in your arsenal to do so. Kichiro, you are not to communicate with the Kyuubi in any way. This is an assessment of your abilities, not your abilities plus the Kyuubi's, is that clear?"

I rolled my eyes. "Technically, if I don't have access to the Kyuubi, that means I'm theoretically dead or dying, so the Kyuubi, in all his wisdom, is a part of my repertoire."

Sakumo was not amused.

"If this was a true assessment, then it would be an assessment of everything I'm capable of."

"Logically, you are correct, but the Kyuubi's strength is not to be used lightly."

 ** _I am the great Kyuubi no Kitsune. If I wish to interfere, I will and this boy's pitiful strength can do nothing to stop me. If I do not wish my power to be used, it will not be used. No stupid mortal can—_**

 _You know I'm the only one who can hear you, right?_

I winced at the Kyuubi's pissed-off roar and reflexively covered my ears.

"Kichiro? Kichiro!" Sakumo snapped.

"I'm fine, what were you about to say?"

"What happened?"

"Kyuubi got arrogant and I got smart with him. You were saying?"

"What are you thinking—"

"Let's not start this argument now, it won't get us anywhere. Can I use the Kyuubi in the assessment?"

Sakumo crossed his arms. "Fine, but If you lose control…" He left the threat hanging.

"I'm not going to lose control."

"Nagato will be going first."

The boy swallowed behind me. I ruffled his hair as I walked to the edge of the ground.

"Use every skill you have, Nagato, and the match is over when you succeed or are no longer able to continue." Sakumo explained. "Understand?"

Nagato nodded and settled into a stance almost identical to my crazy, improper starting stance.

Sakumo smirked in amusement and drew his sabre. Nagato swallowed. "Begin," Sakumo stated neutrally.

Nagato flew into action, copying my opening attacks perfectly. I felt an extreme case of déjà vu as I watched what could have been one of the spars I had with Sakumo during my second year of training. Nagato could have passed the Genin test without a problem, he probably would have been at the top of the class, given his academics reflected his abilities.

I wasn't entirely sure why Nagato was copying me move for move. A few seconds later, I realized that there was absolutely no way for Nagato to be able to copy me that closely—he had never had the chance to analyze my preferred fighting style. It took me a few more seconds to notice the extremely basic area-of-effect Genjutsu Nagato had somehow managed. A few seconds later, when Matsushita's eyes widened in surprise, I realized that Nagato had made up a Genjutsu similar to mine which somehow made a person want to believe what they were seeing. I carefully extracted myself from it and noticed the real Nagato carefully sneaking around behind Sakumo.

Nagato reached up to grab the necklace from Sakumo's neck, but before his hand closed around it, Sakumo grabbed his wrist and landed a solid backhanded strike in Nagato's stomach with the hilt of his sabre.

"Ouch," I rubbed my stomach. I had tried the same trick on Sakumo ages ago and it had ended up the exact same way, but Sakumo had struck me hard enough that he had to end training or risk compounding the injury. Unlike me, however, Nagato went on the offensive instead of recoiling and regrouping. My eyes widened when I realized that Sakumo hadn't broken the Genjutsu.

He was expecting Nagato to act like me and back down, he was seeing that in the Genjutsu, so didn't even see the kunai in Nagato's hand until it had made a jagged scratch from the left corner of his jaw to the bridge of his nose. It would have been much deeper, but Nagato pulled the strike at the last second. I gaped. I had never seen anyone land a solid hit on Sakumo. I had trained with him for two years and the best I had ever managed from endless spars with him was a glancing blow to his wrist when I overextended my reach with my sticks and broke my arm in seven places from the fall. I ended up more concerned with the injury than celebrating a hit on Sakumo.

Sakumo twisted faster than Nagato could track and knocked the boy out of attacking range to touch the sizable gash. I wouldn't have been surprised if the blade had touched bone. Nagato didn't let up, and took every advantage of the distraction. I barely caught the three hand seals before Sakumo was forced to leap out of the way of a wave of water.

Unfortunately for Nagato, only the first few minutes of the match let him show off his offensive plan. The next few minutes would be him forced to defend against Sakumo's onslaught before his turn to return to the offensive came.

Sakumo may not have been the best shinobi in Konoha, but he was a damn good one. Anyone else would have beat Nagato to a pulp for managing that, to prove that they were undoubtedly the better ninja, but he didn't, though he did make a point not to let Nagato get anywhere close to landing a second hit, and dealt several punishing hits of his own. Sakumo ended up pushing Nagato to the point where he was making up Taijutsu moves to try and keep Sakumo at bay and provide enough of an offense that he wasn't overwhelmed.

Most shinobi skimped of defensive training, since defense never won anything. I was an oddball in the fact the majority of my training was focused on defense. It would take a Jōnin to break through my defensive Taijutsu without any tricks. Nagato obviously had more training than average in defense, but it couldn't compare to the training I received, even though he did seem to have a decent understanding of what I could do and had to have modeled his independent training after my old regime. Luckily, Sakumo quickly picked up on that and didn't accidentally attack Nagato with something too far above his level.

By the time Sakumo backed off to allow Nagato to take his turn on the offensive, I had resolved to confront Nagato on how he knew so much of my fighting techniques. Not even Kushina was familiar enough with my style and abilities to copy them as well as he did and I hadn't fought enough in front of people, including him, for it to be public knowledge. Besides, as Jinchuuriki, my abilities were supposed to be obscured to reduce the risk of capture. Sakumo was warier as Nagato liberally used an odd variation of Kawarimi as a primary part of his next tactic.

Whatever Nagato was trying ultimately failed, though Sakumo got doused with a weak wave of water in the process.

Two minutes later, Nagato gave up. Sakumo gave him an approving nod before helping him over to where I knelt, watching them carefully. He shoved Nagato forward as I summoned medical chakra to my hands. The second I touched Nagato's forehead for diagnostics, my assessment began.

Sakumo tried to slap me with several Genjutsu once I stood up, which I dismissed the second they touched me. Since he still had his sabre out, I drew my sticks.

Obviously, the sabre was the biggest threat to me and I had to either take control of, or neutralize the advantage it gave him. Unfortunately, the fact that is could channel chakra meant that the only way I could neutralize said advantage was to remove the weapon from his control. The second threat was the size difference, but I knew I could rely on the Kyuubi to get me out of a bind if that came into play.

Third was the skill difference. I had no delusion that I could hold him off for more than a few hits if Sakumo went all-out, but he wouldn't during an assessment and I could take advantage of that. The only areas I could beat him in was in chakra control and chakra capacity. If I was fighting to win, I could take advantage of that, but I had an objective.

Sakumo was probably the worst opponent for anyone to face. By Jōnin standards, he was a master at Taijutsu and Kenjutsu, he was taught by an Uchiha, so his skill in Genjutsu was terrifying. His weakness, if it could be considered a weakness, was Ninjutsu, but that was only because he had only slightly above average chakra reserves, it had nothing to do with his skill.

Nagato had tried to play it sneaky, but I knew I couldn't trick Sakumo, if I had a chance, it was ruined when Nagato used my default tactics and almost succeeded. My best bet was to turn it into a Ninjutsu battle and force Sakumo to exhaust himself. There was about a ten percent chance it would work. While general Ninjutsu was just as effective, elemental Ninjutsu was much more powerful and the only way to remain competitive at a Jōnin level. I knew Sakumo had his affinity, lighting, mastered, as well as fire and earth. Wind was his weak point, which was why my training with it was touch and go with a lot of experimentation. I learned to utilize wind by messing with the element, under supervision, until it worked. Sakumo realized, too late, that I wasn't following the standard path of learning by solidifying the association with the way my chakra moved to specific hand seals. By learning medical Ninjutsu before any other jutsus, I gained a one-of-a-kind flexibility with my chakra that Sakumo wasn't sure could be duplicated. Hand seals made it easier to learn a jutsu, but after I practiced it enough, they weren't entirely necessary and I used them when I was too distracted to focus on molding my chakra properly, such as when I was fighting.

It was both a handicap and an advantage. Shape manipulation was much harder for me since I didn't have a guide, but I wasn't constrained to hand seals in combat, which gave me an edge none but the most highly-trained ninja had.

When I made no motion to start the actual match, Sakumo lunged forward, trying to knock one of the sticks out of my hand with the flat of his blade and a burst of chakra.

My sticks were strange weapons. The wood was far more durable than it should have been, it was obviously carved from the trees the Shodai grew around the village. What was strange was that there was something inside of the sticks that could conduct elemental chakra, like Sakumo's sabre, though nowhere near as effective or powerful. To a certain extent, even the wood could conduct chakra, though it was difficult. I had no idea how it had gotten inside the wood, especially since the sticks showed no sign of wear after four years of combat and training. I knew seals had something to do with it, but there seemed to be no sign of them. There was an odd, circular mark left at the tops of the sticks that Sakumo refused to elaborate on. My crazy, fanciful theory was that the sticks had been a project Uzumaki Mito and/or the Shodai had attempted. Unfortunately, there was no way I would have been allowed to wield a legacy like that until I was at least a Jōnin.

When Sakumo's sabre hit the stick in my right hand, chakra raced down the blade. I sent a wave of healing chakra down my arm and spun with the momentum the strike gave me and retaliated.

In the shinobi world, offense was the best defense and I was certainly not lacking in the defense department. Sakumo countered with ease and I made my first attempt at disarming him. My sticks had optional straps that I could loop around my wrists. I used those straps to twist up Sakumo's blade and clamped my sticks together on either side of the blade, struggling to fight the chakra invading my body. I twisted and forced the blade free from Sakumo's grip, leaping backwards with my trophy. My right stick dangled from my wrist as I held the sabre. I could tell from Sakumo's expression that he was regretting both teaching me the trick and how to use the blade, both with and without my sticks.

Sakumo drew two kunai. "Clever," he admitted. "What are you going to do with it?"

"A weapon the enemy knows better is a weapon against you," I responded and tossed the sabre out of the fighting area. He sent one last longing look at the blade before refocusing. "It's not like I took your baby." I rolled my eyes while sending a near-invisible blade of wind at him.

He spat fire at me, but I had charged the jutsu with more power than was probably wise and Sakumo ended up with a flaming blade trying to slice him down the middle. It forced him to dodge and retaliate with a bolt of lightning I barely managed to split it with a second overpowered blade of wind. I continued to bombard him with wind. Almost immediately, he caught on to my strategy. It was much more direct than was normal for me, but was the only option I could see. Sakumo could keep up and beat me in everything but raw chakra output. Even without the Kyuubi, I had him beat due to my Tsunade-level chakra control and the fact that I had low Jōnin reserves anyways. I could throw wind jutsu around indefinitely with the Kyuubi's help.

I managed to keep Sakumo on the defensive for a solid five minutes before he started to figure out my general pattern of attack. Things started to get hairy after that. While I could keep up more powerful Ninjutsu for longer, Sakumo's skill overshadowed mine and it was everything I could do to keep the fight from turning into a Taijutsu battle. I knew I was running a significant risk letting Sakumo back me around the training ground. I was going to end up in a trap, I knew it, I just hope my half-assed plan to get out would work.

Sure enough, a minute later I found myself with kunai and shuriken flying at me from every direction. I waited until the last possible second before substituting myself with Sakumo. The effort left me on my knees, but there was no way Sakumo could have stopped all the projectiles and was left with several scratches all over his body and a kunai in his left thigh.

He started attacking me with Genjutsus, which I struggled to dispel as fast as he piled them on. His hands never stopped flashing through hand seals for the next minute. He sent them so hard and fast that I was forced to close my eyes in concentration. I knew that if even one of them stuck, I would lose. Finally, Sakumo let up, unsuccessful, but he was in control of the fight and forced me to engage in Taijutsu.

I wasn't sure how much time passed; it was all a blur of blocks and dodges and struggling to stay off to his left to slow down his attacks. Unfortunately, Sakumo upped the speed and struck me full force in the throat. Sakumo never would have landed a hit like that in a regular spar, but this was an examination of what I could do, and healing during combat was a skill I had. Using it on myself in combat was slightly more difficult than I anticipated, but that might have been because three-fourths of my brain was screaming _cantbreathecantbreathecantbreathe_ and the other quarter was split between healing and staying out of Sakumo's range with judicious use of Kawarimi and a Shunshin.

I didn't think Sakumo meant to, but not only did he crush my trachea, but he tore my jugular vein open. I wasn't sure how, but there was no way Sakumo would intentionally run a risk like that and keep pushing me to fight. If he was trying to get me pissed off, it worked. Basic repairs, like fixing torn muscles and broken bones were easy to do without direct contact with what I was trying to fix. I could heal bruises because they were generally directly below the surface of the skin. Organs were well-protected enough that any damage they took without breaking the skin would be mild enough that they just needed to be coaxed to heal faster but even more severe injuries could be easily healed because access to them was easy with only a few simple layers of muscle and skin in the way. The jugular vein was under a mess of blood vessels, muscles, and other tissue. It was all I could do to keep myself from bleeding out. Sakumo immediately stopped his attack when I stabbed myself in the neck with a chakra scalpel and stuck my finger into the hole. I couldn't even enjoy the expression of horror I knew was on his face. I easily finished fixing the damage and _finally_ started to reconstruct my windpipe.

Unfortunately, healing my torn vocal cords would take more time than I could afford, especially because I wouldn't be able to cut myself open and fix them directly. I would have given up then, but without a voice and no signs for 'I give up', I had to continue. I was of the opinion that it was Sakumo's intention, otherwise he would have broken my face or ribs instead.

When I stood up, Sakumo resumed the match.

I didn't get a single chance to force space with Ninjutsu, and my attempt to make Sakumo think I was a few inches to the right was dismissed without a second thought.

I wanted to try to show him what he wanted to see with a Genjutsu, but I didn't know what he wanted, so I knew it wouldn't work.

I did know what he feared. While I fought, I explained my plan to the Kyuubi and started to draw on his chakra. Sakumo flinched back as my eyes changed color and my teeth sharpened. I started to pool the Kyuubi's chakra on the ground beside me. When Sakumo glanced at it, the Genjutsu was set and I dove out of the way. In his eyes, the pooling chakra grew into a miniature replica of the Kyuubi. I couldn't do that for real, but no one knew that. The fake-me's eyes widened in horror and the Genjutsu turned into a convincing rendition of what it would look like if I lost control.

As my hand closed around the necklace, Sakumo whipped a kunai at the fake. I jerked backwards as the kunai went through the fake's head. The Kyuubi took back his chakra so quickly that I nearly collapsed. In hindsight, I probably should have expected Sakumo to kill me rather than risk the Kyuubi's escape. I knew full well he was a shinobi first, person second, but it was frightening and disorienting to watch myself die, even more so since it was Sakumo doing the killing.

"Inari, Hachiman, and Kuebiko, help me," I heard him murmur into the air as my fake body's head snapped back.

Everyone was standing, horrified and frozen as my fake body with the ring of a fake kunai protruding from its forehead collapsed. I was frozen, indescribable emotions tearing through me for the briefest of instants before I realized that the real kunai was hurtling towards Nagato. I snapped the Genjutsu, screaming, but no one would be able to react in time and my vocal cords were still too damaged to make actual sounds. I shunshined forward, praying it would work properly, and slammed into Nagato the instant before the kunai would have gone through his head for real. Instead, it punched through the ball and socket joint of my shoulder, only nicking Nagato's forehead.

His head hit the stone wall behind him a moment before mine.

(-_-)

I couldn't have blacked out for more than a few seconds, because when I woke up, I had not been moved from the place I collapsed on top of Nagato.

The boy was already awake and blinking sluggishly.

I pushed myself up, trying to ignore the wave of dizziness. A few seconds later, I soundlessly screamed as someone pulled the kunai out of my shoulder and shoved me to the side. I fell hard on my back while someone else pressed their palm against my forehead and performed an extremely rudimentary diagnostics jutsu.

"No, no, lemme go!" Nagato begged and small fingers wrapped around my ankle.

I tried to sit up, but someone pressed the tip of a knife against my neck. I looked around, but everything was blurry.

"He's dangerous, boy, get back!" Someone ordered. A second person activated prisoner containment seals on my major chakra gates.

"What the hell are you doing?" Sakumo demanded.

"He's dangerous! He should be locked up!"

"Take off the seals," Sakumo ordered and I felt several reluctant hands pull off the seals. "Matsushita-san, please take both boys to their clan compound and impress upon their family that the two of them are not to leave the building, security level eight."

Sakumo pulled me to my feet, but my body barely responded. I could feel his steel control wavering as he put my uninjured arm around Nagato's shoulders and I would have fallen back to the ground if Nagato hadn't held me up. Someone pulled us both into a Shunshin and I fell to my knees on the front porch. I wasn't entirely sure how much time elapsed, but the next thing I knew was Ise grabbing Matsushita around the neck and slamming him against the wall.

"Who do you think you are?" Ise demanded. "Who do you think you are to waltz back here with my sons in this condition and think you can get away with it?"

The next second, Kushina was there, pulling Ise off the man. "They're just training injuries, leave him alone!" She said firmly. It was a good thing Kushina arrived when she did.

"It was just an assessment," Matsushita affirmed.

"Get them inside. Shita-sensei, you are welcome to stay." Kushina said politely.

"I think it would be wise if I did not. Hatake-san said to relay that Kichiro-kun and Nagato are not to leave the premises, security level eight."

"Orders received and acknowledged," Kushina responded professionally. "Come on, let's get them inside and settled."

I recognized Takeshi as he picked me up and carried me inside.

He sat me down on a wooden chair and Kushina deftly undid the chest plate of my armor and took it off so Ise could begin bandaging the wound on my shoulder and immobilizing my arm across my chest. Nagato summarized the non-classified version of what happened over the past several days, which basically amounted to 'Kichiro has been having a rough time and we'd both been training.'

"Kushina, can you go get me the medical seals for repairing bone as well as the medicine for nausea and inflammation?"

A minute later, Kushina returned and Ise pressed a slip of paper to my temple.

"Is his head broken?" Kushina asked.

"I don't think so, but it doesn't hurt to be sure. Activate this for me?"

Healing chakra wrapped around my head for several minutes as I stared blankly ahead. Kushina was there and studying my face, but it hurt too much to try and respond.

"He's not going to respond, Kushina, he has a severe concussion. Takeshi, give him these pills and take him into my room to lie down, we all know Fusō isn't resting in there so she can watch over him while he sleeps off the damage."

Someone pressed two pills into my mouth with sour tasting fingers and I swallowed them automatically. Kushina gently took my weapons and sealed them away, tucking the storage seal into my pocket. Takeshi picked me up and carried me into a separate room and laid me on the bed.

"I heard everything, don't worry about him," Fusō murmured and shifted so she sat right beside me, her fingers combing my hair. "I'm pregnant, not incapacitated."

"Just—"

"I've had a baby before, this is all highly unnecessary. I carried Nagato through a war zone and gave birth while shinobi fought a kilometer away. Trust me, I'm fine."

"But you—"

"Of the two of us, who is the prenatal specialist?"

He quickly backed out of the room. I curled against her side and she wrapped a heavy blanket around me before rubbing soothing patterns into my back and humming softly. I was out within seconds.

I didn't wake up for hours. When I did, the room was empty and I was practically swaddled in the blanket. I sat up and followed the sound of the voices.

I obviously interrupted dinner.

"Nii-san!" Echoed around the table and several of the kids ran forward. I braced myself against the doorframe.

I tried to greet them, but belatedly realized my vocal cords were still damaged. I relayed the information to Kushina through field signs.

"He says it's nice to see everyone and he won't be able to talk for a little while. There aren't field signs for details," she translated.

The adults called the kids back to the table and the youngest girl grabbed my cushion and dragged me over to sit beside them.

"Misaki, Kichiro can only use one arm right now, so he can't eat unless you let go." Ise reprimanded softly. A plate of food was set in front of me and the debate over whether it was worth making their own paper for Fūinjutsu due to the war shortage resumed.

I ate mechanically, only half listening to the chattering around me. I didn't even notice when almost everyone had left and the dishes were cleared away.

"Kichiro?" Ise murmured and knelt down beside me.

I glanced over at him and pressed my hand to my throat, working on healing my vocal cords.

He patiently waited until I pulled my hand away before continuing. "The kids are going to sleep early, Fusō thinks you should as well. Your eyes still aren't focusing on anything."

"I can see just fine," I rasped.

"Bullshit. Come on, Fusō wants to fuss over someone and Nagato already escaped upstairs. Kaede and I have the night shift at the hospital tonight and Fusō is due sometime in the next week. I'd feel better if you were there just in case the baby comes early."

I let him lead me back into the bedroom, but after I nearly fell flat on my face, he picked me up and carried me the rest of the way. Fusō started to fuss the moment we stepped through the door.

"I have to go," Ise murmured and left.

I didn't mind as Fusō started her mother routine on me.

* * *

 _Author's note: T_ _his is chapter 50! There are a total of 101 chapters to be published, so I'm going to call this the halfway point. Leave me a review and tell me what you think!_


	51. Chapter 51

To my surprise, I slept the entire night curled against Fusō's back. I was also surprised that I slept through several children crawling onto the bed with me.

Fusō woke when I sat up, feeling much better than before. She smiled and rubbed the grit out of my eyes.

"You just needed a meal and a good night's sleep," she concluded. "Are you going to fix that shoulder or do you want me to redress it?"

"It hurts," I responded stupidly.

"I know; I've had a knife to the shoulder before. Are you going to heal it yourself, or do you want me to reapply the bandages?" She responded patiently.

"I'll fix it," I murmured, my voice still rough. "Can you help?"

"Sure, kiddo, come on, there's stuff to clean it in the kitchen."

I crawled over the sleeping children and followed her into the kitchen where Takeshi and another woman were making breakfast. A little boy who was so malnourished that he looked younger than Nagato, even though I knew he was at least nine, followed the woman around with wide eyes, taking the bites of fruits and vegetables she periodically handed down to him, and wearing nothing but a ragged pair of shorts. He immediately lost interest in the food and watched me carefully sit down on a low stool as Fusō unwound the bandages and cleaned out the stab wound. A few minutes later, I healed the damage to the bone and tissue while the boy watched in fascination from behind Fusō.

"This is Tamaki," Fusō introduced. "Tamaki, this is Kichiro, your big brother."

I held out a hand politely. He pointed to my shoulder instead. "I can do that," he whispered. "Watch!"

He leapt towards me, his hand reaching for my mouth. I flinched out of the way, barely catching him before he ran headfirst into the wall.

I felt slightly sick when I noticed the pale scars in the shape of adult-sized bite marks across his torso. I looked to Fusō for an explanation.

"His chakra, even though he only has the amount of the average civilian his age, is extremely potent, and it can heal anyone who bites him," she explained as I one-handedly fended off the boy's attempts to stick his hands in my mouth. "It's uncommon in the clan, but it's one of the reasons Uzu had its own school for doctors long before medical Ninjutsu was created and Tsunade-hime founded the hospital in Konoha. He discovered it at the orphanage shortly before he was taken and used it to heal his friend who fell off the roof."

The boy wasn't listening to her. I held up a hand glowing with medical chakra to distract him from his new game.

"He's completely blind, so he navigates by chakra sensing. We aren't sure if it was something that happened while he was missing or if he's always been like that, the kids don't remember and it took us several days to figure out why he ran into furniture and walls but knew exactly where everyone was. He's terrified of ninja; he screams about bad chakra whenever they get too close. We think it's something the person who took him did, that's why you didn't see him at dinner last night. He doesn't go into hysterics with Kushina, but he doesn't like her either. I don't know why you're different."

"Has he met Tsunade?"

Fusō shook her head. "The medic-nins are only available to treat shinobi."

"He hasn't been seen by—"

"Ise, Kaede, and I all examined him. As far as we can tell, he's only malnourished. The rest of the damage is to his mind."

Tamaki finally gathered up the courage to touch my palm and I wrapped his hand with medical chakra, stopping as soon as he jerked back in surprise. Fusō took a step back as the game I played with hundreds of skittish children began.

I held my hand out to him and held perfectly still until he stepped forward and put his hand in mine. I wrapped it with healing chakra, and to my surprise, he didn't pull away. He figured out the game quicker than most kids and switched hands. His bones were extremely weak, and the muscles barely strong enough to function, so I temporarily fortified them to help his cells get the most out of what he ate, at least for the next few days. It would make him almost hyper during that time, and it was meant to associate something positive about medics and shinobi in general. He grabbed my wrist and maneuvered my hand to wrap around his forearm.

The chakra spread from his wrist to his elbow before he jerked away in surprise. Cautiously, he held my hand against his other arm and I did the same thing. The expression of amazement made me smile. He grabbed my other hand and the game continued.

He held my hand against his chest and I gradually filled his torso with medical chakra. The corners of his mouth twitched up in a ghost of a smile as he pressed both of my hands against the center of his chest. He looked thoughtful for a long time as I continued to heal and fortify his body as much as I could, especially focusing on bolstering his immune system.

When I pulled back my chakra, his bottom lip started to tremble. "More?" He pleaded. I covered my hand in healing chakra, but didn't touch him with it, instead, I let him fidget with my fingers until he crawled into my lap. Cautiously, he pressed his ear against my heart. "Lub-dub. Lub-dub. Lub-dub." He started to murmur, barely audible. When he settled down, I noticed the adults watching me and Tamaki carefully.

I looked at Fusō, confused, so she explained. "Besides screaming at the ninja, this is the first thing he's spoken. It's another one of the reasons he wasn't seen by a medic, he just kept screaming 'bad chakra' whenever they passed by his room. Considering who was responsible for his condition in the first place, we didn't sedate him so he could be checked over, even though Tsunade-hime volunteered. He hasn't voluntarily touched anyone except me, Takeshi, and Shizuka. I think it's mostly because we're the ones giving him food at all hours of the day. I don't know why he's taken to you so easily."

"Because my chakra is corrupted," I answered easily. "It doesn't quite register as human to sensors because of the Kyuubi and how I early I started medical ninjutsu. It's—softer, I guess. The difference is slight, only really good sensors can pick it up."

Fusō nodded and rubbed a spot on her belly. "The baby is definitely going to be a shinobi, he or she is almost as strong as Nagato was."

"You can't be sure of that until several years after birth," I contradicted.

"Trust me, a mother knows."

I stood up, picking Tamaki up with me, and offered the stool to Fusō, who just shook her head.

"Part of me misses travelling with just Ise. He stopped coddling me—mostly—once I beat him over the head for the third time. Honestly, it's like everyone thinks I've never had a kid before! I was working up until the day Nagato was born, and was back to work the day after!"

I winced. "That's not very smart."

"I'm not even thirty yet." I wasn't sure of that fact, but I didn't contradict her.

"The second kid is often weaker than the first because of the stress pregnancy puts on the chakra pathways. You really should take it easy."

"Two hearts," Tamaki agreed with me, pointing at Fuso. "Three hearts." He sat up and laid a hand against my chest. "Four hearts." He continued and covered his own heart with both hands.

"See, Tamaki-kun agrees with me."

She smiled lightly and sat down. "You always care about everyone else, don't you, Kichiro?"

Tamaki's arms tightened around my neck and he hid his face against my collar. "Bad chakra! Bad chakra!" He started to repeat and I could feel tears moisten my shirt. A few seconds later, Kushina appeared in the doorway of the kitchen. I sent soothing pulses of medical chakra to calm the boy down, but all it did was quiet him.

"Does anyone know where Minato is? He wanted to train by himself yesterday and never came back. I just checked the training ground, he wasn't there."

"You know he can't get in after sunset, he's probably at his apartment," Fusō reminded.

"I checked there too."

"Urgent mission?" I suggested.

Kushina shook her head. "Minato and I are an official team, along with that Uchiha asshole." She clamped a hand over her mouth and looked at Fusō. "Sorry," she apologized. "Anyways, we always take missions together and there's no way Minato would have got one without me. I'm not worried or anything, just curious. Thanks anyways. Kichiro, I'd give you a hug, but Tamaki would freak out, so I'll see you later."

She turned on her heel and marched away as Tamaki squirmed out of my arms and ran over to beg for food from Shizuka. Fusō stood up and grabbed my arm, steering me out of the room, closed the door, and dragged me several meters down the hall before slamming my back against the wall.

"What game are you playing?" She demanded, her voice low.

I just looked up at her in confusion.

"She was up most of the night worried sick about you and you only say two words to her the second you can carry a coherent conversation?"

"I'll talk to her later—"

"You know better than I that 'later' isn't a guarantee for you two." I flinched. "Go after her this instant and apologize!"

She let me go and I raced up the stairs after my sister. I knew better than to disregard the orders of a pregnant woman.

I caught up with Kushina on the second floor and walked beside her in silence up to the third. They had set up an indoor training ground in the days that I had been gone, and Kushina immediately started target practice, ignoring me completely as I sat down against the wall.

After the hundredth kunai struck the target's last open spot and bumped three other kunai off, she plopped down beside me. I put my arm around her.

"Minato was really mad when he found out what we did for Uzu. We got into a really big argument on the training ground, _Fugaku_ had to stop us from fighting. He, Minato, I mean, asked if it was your idea, he didn't believe me when I said it was all mine. He kept saying how he would have expected something like that from you, like you were some kind of traitor."

I combed her hair out of her face.

"He never had a clan, he barely remembers his family, so he doesn't understand. I still remember Uzu. Even though it was just us at the orphanage you used to sneak me out after bedtime and we would go swimming in the ocean. Remember that? Remember that night when we swam across the river and that ninja caught us halfway across and took us back and the lady in charge was furious and locked us in that closet for the day. We slept all day in the closet and you showed me a different way out that night and we swam all the way across the river and then you took me to some sweetshop that was always open and bought us candy with the money you saved up from whenever the lady gave us money to eat in town. We ate candy all the way back and that lady, I can't remember her name, but she caught us sneaking back inside that morning and then whipped us both."

"Probably deserved worse than that."

"Yeah. I'm surprised we made it all the way across that river—twice! It was huge! Anyways, we never spent much time in the orphanage, we always spent the mornings on the playground or in the library and the afternoons wandering around the village, talking to everyone, trying to follow the ninja around."

"Should have spent that time in school."

"I'm glad we didn't. You knew all the stuff they were teaching anyways and taught it to me." She wrapped her arms around my waist. "I know I'm not all that old, but living in Uzu was the happiest time of my life. I really like Konoha too, but no one stops to tell the kids not to stop in the middle of the streets or cares enough to get mad when I sneak out at night. There's no ocean to swim."

I wasn't sure how to respond to that, so I just stayed silent.

"I don't think Minato realizes what it was like to walk down the street and just _know_ that everyone you saw was a part of a giant family that would take care of you if you ever needed it, and even when you didn't. Konoha doesn't do that. There's too many clans here." She fell silent for a long time and started to play with the hem of her uniform. "After the war is over for real, can we go back to Uzu and go swimming again? Even if it's just for a night or two."

"Of course," I murmured.

"Minato wants me to apologize for what I did, but I'm not sorry for it, but I don't want to lose Minato. He's my best friend, even though you annoy him a lot of the time. What am I supposed to do?"

"He'll come around, Kushina. Minato won't make you stop being who you are, and you're an Uzumaki through and through. We're loyal to a fault, and Uzu held that loyalty first, just like Konoha holds his loyalty above all. It might take a little while, but he'll realized that if Konoha had been destroyed and he'd been forced to move to Uzu, he'd want to keep his village alive in a foreign place that seemed to forget about it. He'll figure it out, I promise."

"I know that, but what if he doesn't?"

"He will."

"Promise?"

"Promise, even if I have to beat it into him for you."

"You never beat anyone up."

I shrugged. "I haven't needed to."

"Breakfast is almost ready."

"Okay."

"You should go eat."

"Are you trying to get rid of me?"

"You're a bag of bones, Nii-san," she deadpanned. "I'll eat later."

"Is this because of Tamaki?"

Kushina shrugged.

"Then I think I'll stay with you."

She stood up and pulled me to my feet.

"I will defenestrate you if try and toss me down the stairs," I warned. Kushina hesitated, thought better of her original plan, and picked me up in a fireman's carry. Ninja called it something different, but I never cared to remember the name. "Okay, I get your point, I can walk down the stairs by myself."

"The second I put you down, you're just going to pick me up instead."

"You're definitely going swimming now."

"No jutsus in the house, Ji-chan's rule."

"I don't need a jutsu." I licked my finger and stuck it in her ear.

"Ew, ew, _ew_!" She shrieked. Someone whapped me on the head with a rolled up piece of paper.

"Hey!" I looked up at the woman who had just come out of the second floor and was following us down the stairs.

"Stop teasing your sister."

"She was teasing me first," I protested.

"Keiko-sensei is just teasing you, Nii-san."

I gave her another wet willy. Kushina tried to throw me down the last few steps, but caught hold of her and dragged her down with me. She grabbed both my wrists and landed on top of me, trying to pin me. My back had barely hit the ground when I reversed the hold and nearly managed to pin her instead when she wriggled her foot between us and launched me into the air. We locked hands and when we landed, it turned into an impromptu game of mercy, shinobi-style.

Keiko edged around us. "Fusō! The kids are fighting again!"

There was an unspoken rule of no chakra, otherwise things tended to blow up. I hooked a toe behind Kushina's ankle as I forced her back a step and she started to topple backwards. Instead of falling, she tried to swing between my legs, but I dropped her on the ground, only for her foot to catch me in the hip. Both of us landed flat on our backs.

In my old body, I never could have done it, but I kicked myself up to stand on my forearms and then fell on top of Kushina, sitting across her stomach. To my surprise, we were both laughing, that is until Fusō grabbed both of our ears and dragged us to our feet.

"Ow, ow, ow, ow, ow!" Kushina and I chorused, still laughing.

Fusō looked like she wanted to say something, but after a minute she just shook her head and released us. "I love you both to death, but—" she kept shaking her head. "I guess—" Her eyes lost focus for a moment.

"What?" Kushina and I asked simultaneously.

"What time is it?"

"Almost eight-thirty, why?" Kushina asked.

"Takako and Keiko just left for the shop; Takeshi left a while ago for the meeting; Ise, Kaede, and Shizuka aren't supposed to be home for several hours because of Tamaki—"

"What's going on?"

"Oh dear."

"What?"

"I really need to go lie down. The two of you are going to have to take care of the kids for a little while."

"Are you—" I started to ask and reached for her, my hand glowing with medical chakra. She caught my wrist.

"I'm fine, I just need to lay down, I'm feeling really dizzy, you were right about taking it easy. I shouldn't have set the table by myself. Anyways, Kichiro, the kids are in the living room, would you mind telling them that breakfast is on the table and getting everyone to the table. Gin will help you. Don't wait for me, I already ate. Kushina, I need to have a very long chat with you. I found out about your most recent watercolor job."

"Whatever happened, it wasn't me, I swear!"

"Sure it wasn't."

Fusō let go of me and put her arm around Kushina's shoulders and led her away. "Okay, maybe I did a little bit, but it was all—" The bedroom door closed behind them. I couldn't help but think there was something odd about the exchange, but I put it out of my mind and went to get the kids for breakfast.

Just as I filled the last plate on the table and the kids dug in, Kushina's shrill voice rang through the house. "KICHIRO!" She screamed. I didn't even know Kushina's voice could go that high.

"Keep the kids in here!" I ordered Nagato over my shoulder and bolted in the direction of Kushina's chakra. I nearly kicked down the door to Fusō's bedroom in my haste. "What's—oh." Kushina wordlessly pointed at Fusō, who was valiantly trying to hide the fact that she was starting labor. "Kushina, go help Nagato and the little kids with breakfast, I'll take care of this."

She was gone in the blink of an eye.

"Kichiro, you shouldn't worry—I'll be fine," Fusō stated.

"I'm not worried, everything is fine," I stated as I put a hand over her stomach. I used the tiniest trickle of chakra to confirm the statement. "Everything really is fine, I promise. You know what to do," I said as I laid several thick blankets on the bed so the birthing fluids wouldn't ruin the mattress.

"I'm sorry, Kichiro—"

"Don't be, I've done this hundreds of times, you've attended even more births than me. We both know what to do, I'll use a bit of chakra to speed up the process and we'll be done in an hour, okay? You'll have a new son or daughter by the time Ise gets home."

I genuinely wasn't the slightest bit worried, I could fix anything that could go wrong. I kept up a steady stream of reassurances. Thirty-seven minutes later, I was holding a disgusting pinkish blob of slightly-premature, screaming baby. I deftly cut the newborn's umbilical cord and gently washed the baby while Fusō panted on the bed.

By the time she was reasonably composed, I finished cleaning the infant, who was very loudly protesting her introduction to the world.

I stood beside Fusō and the moment she reached for the child, I dumped the noisy devil in her arms, exhausted. "Congratulations on your new baby girl," I told her as she carefully began to feed her child while I cleaned up the mess. When I checked the hallway, I saw Ise and Nagato waiting outside and waved them inside.

Fusō smiled at Ise, who quickly replaced the pillows supporting Fusō with himself. She settled against him and waved Nagato forward. I pushed the hesitant boy towards them. "Nagato," Fusō said patiently. The newborn was already asleep. "Meet your new baby sister!"

I picked Nagato up and set him down beside Fusō. She turned and gently settled the sleeping infant in his arms. I helped Fusō arrange his arms to hold the baby properly.

"What's her name?" Nagato asked, barely audible.

"Ise and I decided to ask you if you wanted to name her."

Overwhelmed, Nagato shoved the baby at me a little more forcefully than was probably good for the newborn, and fled the room. The infant woke, mewling, but quickly calmed as I sat down on the bed in the place Nagato vacated, mostly to discretely stop Fusō from running after him.

"Someone needs to go talk to him," she told me.

"He just had a very abrupt awakening as to what his job as both a shinobi and an older brother entails."

"Someone should explain—"

"No, this is something he needs to work out for himself. I'll go talk to him when he calms down."

Fusō stared at the door before settling back against Ise. "I suppose you understand him better than anyone. Both Ise and I were the youngest of our families."

I flinched when the door opened unexpectedly, but it was only Kushina. I quickly handed Ise the child when I saw her expression. "I'll see you later," I sent over my shoulder, and grabbed Kushina on my way out the door.


	52. Chapter 52

Unfortunately, I escaped one potentially awkward outsider moment and landed in another, running straight into Minato, who appeared to have been dragged in by Jiraiya, who stood against the wall with an uncharacteristic attentiveness and looked as if he had just returned from a mission.

"Um—" I began.

"You're in ANBU," Minato interrupted.

"No," I lied firmly.

Someone had intentionally made sure Ise had the information he needed to figure out my new post. I knew my post in ANBU wasn't a secret in the upper tiers of the village, but to preserve my safety and village security, protocol still had to be followed. Since Kushina was my immediate family and next-of-kin, she had a right to know why I would be disappearing, and in my absence, she took on most of my responsibilities. Fusō would know by extension, since Nagato was a part of ANBU as well, but to anyone else, I was just another Chuunin and Minato should know better than to try to poke his nose into my duties. Compartmentalization was extremely important during wartime, and he knew that.

I could tell that Minato was extremely angry and I had a good idea what he was angry about. Kushina's fists were clenched, but she was obviously upset as well.

"I shouldn't be a part of this—"

"In here, all three of you," Jiraiya ordered and jabbed his thumb at the door he was leaning beside.

I followed them in, tense. Jiraiya shut the door and activated the privacy seals.

"I don't know what got between the two of you, I was gone for less than a week, but this is going to be resolved here and now."

"She's a lying traitor!" Minato snarled, jabbing a finger at Kushina. Jiraiya flinched at that, though I couldn't be sure why. I flinched too, so I didn't say anything.

"I didn't betray anyone!" Kushina shouted back.

"What happened?" Jiraiya demanded.

When both of them started trying to talk over each other, Jiraiya held up a hand until they quieted.

"Kichiro, what started this?"

"I don't know the entire situation."

"What do you know?"

"That assumptions kill."

Jiraiya flinched again and my forehead crinkled as I tried to figure out why he was so easily affected by the conversation. I knew Jiraiya didn't have the most favorable opinion of me, but for him to show anything but perfect control was worrisome at the very least. I was certain that something had knocked Jiraiya off-kilter.

I could have paid more attention as Minato and Kushina explained the disagreement. Instead, I turned over Jiraiya's oddities and tried to make sense of them. I wasn't sure why I was interested, I just was.

My first thought was that he was an imposter, but a silent confirmation of identity and a quick confirmation of his chakra signature was enough to convince me.

My opinion and expectations of Jiraiya were odd, to say the least. From the original story, I remembered him to be an incorrigible pervert, but now, except on a handful of occasions, he kept his comments and actions appropriate for younger company.

I had met Jiraiya for the first time while working as a trainee in the hospital a few months after I arrived in Konoha. He had come back with Tsunade from a mission and had been tagging along after her for hours before I arrived on shift. It had been my fourth day to use actual medical techniques on patients, and due to my age and gender, Tsunade had taken special interest in my training, so she decided to accompany me. I walked in on some kind of argument that was quickly resolved with Jiraiya flying out the window.

Every other week or so, I would spend a day training with Tsunade and saw more of Jiraiya than I wanted to. If it wasn't for the fact that high-level ninja and village officials always found some sort of excuse to visit the hospital and somehow always seemed to run into me, I would have thought something was up.

Even so, I would have had to be an idiot to not notice the political piece I had become. I managed to distance myself from most of it, mainly by excusing myself from the encounters as quickly as possible and avoiding engagements with a handful of excuses, like picking up Kushina from the Academy, training, or studying. Most of them were childish and flimsy excuses but no one pushed the matter far enough for them to fall apart.

I noticed that when Tsunade or Jiraiya were in the hospital, the visits were fewer and further between. I wasn't entirely sure what the message they were trying to send entailed, but in hindsight, I was sure the Hokage was behind it, and it made me feel like claimed property.

Jiraiya played the idiot goofball incredibly well, and if it wasn't for his retorts, which were far quicker and more intelligent than any real idiot, I wouldn't have noticed. Eventually, about a month before the war started, I found myself too sick of the act to let it continue any longer and told him to cut it out. When I confronted him, Tsunade had been in the room, and from her reaction, I was shocked that she had never noticed Jiraiya's acting. Even so, Jiraiya quit the idiot routine when he had no one to act for. While I couldn't pretend to know his act inside and out, his reactions now weren't adding up.

He was showing far more of his true reactions than I had ever seen before, in fact, the amount of expression he was showing was at a dangerous level for a shinobi of his caliber. In ninja terms, that meant he was severely compromised.

As the three of them exploded into an argument, I interrupted firmly. "I hereby authorize protocol seven-seven-five-three-eight on the authority outlined in section seventy-three, subsection eight, of the Konoha ninja code."

The three of them stiffened and looked at me.

"Jiraiya-san, please report to the hospital."

"No!" He screamed, completely losing control.

I jerked backwards as he lunged forward and grabbed the front of my shirt and shoved me against the wall.

"I already lost one team, I refuse to lose the one as well!" He snarled in my face, too quiet for Minato and Kushina to hear. For a brief second, I thought he was going to kill me, but I tamped down that fear when I realized that I wasn't the slightest bit injured by the rough treatment.

Minato and Kushina tried to pull him off, but Jiraiya could probably hold his own against a Kage if pushed to it, even if he couldn't win. Two ten-year old children weren't going to budge him.

"Jiraiya-san, you are emotionally compromised."

"I can still do my job."

"If you were capable of performing your duties, we would not be in this situation right now. Please report to the hospital for an evaluation and treatment. Until then, you are not to take a mission."

I quickly signed for Minato and Kushina to wait outside and after a moment of hesitation, they obeyed, but I could feel them staying directly outside the door before I reactivated the privacy seals and locked the door.

"You have two minutes to tell me what the hell your problem is or I really will have you kicked off the force."

"You can't—"

"Try me. My name has a hell of a lot of weight in the hospital, no matter how long I've been gone."

"I'm not going to talk to a kid about my issues."

"Then report to the hospital, but you are not fit to command a squad."

"You're not any expert."

"Despite my age, I am fully qualified to make that decision. Talk to someone, but until then, you are in no position to try and lead. Talk to me, talk to Tsunade, talk to a stranger, I don't care, but get yourself under control. We are still at war and no one can afford to be emotionally compromised."

"That's rich, coming from you," Jiraiya growled.

"And look where it got me," I retorted seriously.

He couldn't refute that. An outburst of emotion ensured the Kyuubi was sealed inside of me, even though Kushina was an all-around better candidate. That sealed my path, and I only made everything worse every time I lost control of my emotions.

"I'm not going to warn you away, heaven knows you are fully aware of the consequences, but I will not allow you to bring harm to my family, no matter your intentions."

"You have no idea—" He broke off and sat down on the low table in the middle of the room. "You probably knew all along, didn't you?"

"Knew what?"

"About Orochimaru. You knew his experiments were unethical from the very beginning, didn't you?"

"What?"

"Sensei found a lab with a dozen children, eights adults, and four infants locked in cells, Orochimaru was attempting some kind of research in growing back limbs and body parts, Tsunade is still sifting through the material."

"So, this is about Orochimaru."

"You knew what kind of person he was from the beginning; you always seem to know that kind of thing."

"I just assume everyone is an unforgiveable ass until they prove me wrong. For the record, I didn't know what he was doing, I just believed him to be responsible for the Uzumaki child's kidnapping. I had no proof."

"You never told—"

"If I told anyone, I'd be denounced as a liar."

"You could have told me."

"At best, you would have severely injured me for bringing up an accusation of that nature against a teammate. At worst, I would have been court-martialed for slander."

"I wouldn't—"

"It doesn't matter now. Can I bring the kids back in here or are you going to lose you temper at them again because of Orochimaru?"

Jiraiya rubbed his temples. "You're right, I'm not ready to handle this. You know the brats better than I do anyways."

"Hold on—" I protested.

"I want whatever problem they have with each other resolved. They're scheduled to go back out in the field together for an A-rank tomorrow morning."

"They're ten, and Chuunin. They shouldn't be going on an A-rank without a Jōnin at the very least. In fact, Chuunin aren't supposed to be on anything above a B-rank period."

"The two of them could be Tokubetsu Jōnin if I let them take the test, albeit for Fūinjutsu, but the point still stands," he responded. "If they get over whatever has them pissed at each other, they'll be fine. With a bit of preparation, they can defeat any normal Jōnin."

For some reason, the Kyuubi started growling in the back of my mind at that statement. "They wouldn't be fighting a single Jōnin—"

"Konoha has lost over half their Jōnin. The other countries have lost the same, if not more. The chances of them running into an enemy Jōnin team anywhere but the front lines are worse than their chances of catching an enemy Jōnin infiltration team in the Hokage tower."

"There's a reason Konoha only allows Jōnin on solo or duo missions. They're not Jōnin."

"And if they were?"

"They're still ten!"

"You know that no one has a choice in this."

"It doesn't mean I approve. Konoha is supposed to be the place where children don't have to fight, where children can still be children. That's what the Shodai—"

"You speak as if you weren't one."

"No one would allow someone they considered a child to walk into enemy arms like an animal for slaughter. If the governing body of Konoha got its way, I would be dead several times over. Anyone who still considers me a child is an idealistic fool."

"Kichiro—" Jiraiya murmured.

"Look, if you're going to leave, leave, I don't care, but for the time being, you are in no condition to remain a commander. Either way, I'll do as you ask and take our troublesome duo into the backyard to beat some sense into them." I turned on my heel and marched out of the room. I didn't make any effort to avoid startling Minato as I slammed open the door. He immediately reacted with a punch that would have hit an adult in the solar plexus, but nearly caught me in the throat. I only held back my retaliation enough to avoid killing him. I bent to the side, and even as Minato recognized me, I grabbed his wrist and his upper arm, braced my feet and twisted, slamming Minato face-first into the frame of the door. Taken by surprise, Minato took the full force of the strike. I immediately felt guilty, but I still followed through before Minato could recover, jabbing my elbow into his back to give him a horrible cramp that reached from the middle of his back to his fingertips.

He gritted his teeth and tried to retaliate, but I had already twisted the unharmed arm behind his back and started to drag him towards the back of the house. Hearing the commotion, Nagato emerged from his room just as I grabbed the collar of Kushina's shirt and started dragging her along with me. I jerked my head for Nagato to follow.

The boy hurried ahead of us and stopped at a training post with a seal etched into it. When we were close enough, Nagato activated it and a solid blue barrier enveloped the four of us and coated the ground. There were at least five other barrier seals that most likely were to create different conditions, but I wasn't curious enough to see what they did. I stuffed my hand into my pocket and fished out the small roll of bandages I kept in my pocket, just in case I was without my medic pouch. I tore off a section about six inches long and loosely tied it to my belt.

"I could try and talk and reason with the both of you all day, hell, the Hokage could order the two of you to get along and nothing would come of it. I don't give a damn who was right and who was wrong, but this is going to be solved now. Whoever gets this from me gets to resolve this—disagreement, to put it mildly, on their terms."

Both of them gained rather bloodthirsty expressions at my terms.

"Since you obviously care about fairness, it will be Nagato and I against the both of you. We are unarmed you are not. Begin."

Minato and Kushina glanced at each other. I barely had a second to face palm before Kushina took advantage of the bruise forming over Minato's eyes, kicked his legs out from under him, and launched herself towards me. Nagato intercepted her, distracting her just long enough for me to shift positions. Minato lunged towards me, but as he tried to compensate for my change in position, he collided with Kushina, their heads knocking together. I barely managed to pull Nagato out from between them in time. Very quickly, I realized that both of them could beat me in straight Taijutsu. The only thing that kept me out of their grasp was the fact that they fought each other as much as they fought me, and Nagato was an extremely effective distraction and just enough of a threat to them both that their attention was split three ways and it was ridiculously easy to manipulate the attacks meant for me into hitting each other.

I wasn't exactly mad at them until Nagato accidentally trapped himself between the two of them. I barely managed to trade places with him with a desperate Kawarimi and knock the attacks apart and down so their kunai didn't stab me in the front and back, but instead caused a significant damage to each other. Minato's kunai cut deeply into Kushina's side, between her bottom two ribs. Kushina's kunai landed in Minato's ilium. They both released their weapons and stumbled backwards, holding their respective wounds. So far, the fight had only been weapons and Taijutsu. If they worked together, I knew they could beat Nagato and I without a problem. I was only holding back potentially lethal attacks and Nagato held nothing back.

I knew Jiraiya had given them the bell test after they graduated the Academy. "You're both pathetic, weak, and stupid," I snarled at them as Nagato took up his stance beside me. It was a bit harsh, but they should have seen through the objective I gave them within seconds, yet they still looked at me as if they expected me to heal their injuries. I did give them the chance to realize I wasn't planning on it before I turned the fight into a Ninjutsu battle. Nagato caught on faster than I expected and created an uncountable number of Bunshin while I sped through unnecessary hand seals, launching a horizontal blade of wind in their direction. The Bunshin raced after the blade to catch them when they dodged. They wouldn't cause any damage if they managed to lad a hit, but Nagato was in the horde somewhere and they couldn't just disregard the Bunshin when there was no way to tell them apart from the real Nagato in the chaos.

Minato and Kushina leapt over the blade of wind and threw several dozen kunai into the charging horde.

I noted the Genjutsu Nagato applied. A kunai appeared to pass through his real self even as he caught it and threw it back at Minato.

The Genjutsu and the horde vanished as Nagato growled out his next jutsu. "Shuriken Kage Bunshin no Jutsu!" He did not learn that one from me. I didn't want to know where he learned such a high-level jutsu.

Nagato stumbled back towards me, the jutsu taking more chakra than he intended. I didn't let him attack alone. I sped the flight of the kunai with a gust of wind. They managed to avoid anything worse than shallow scratches. They tried to counter as I followed up with a barrage of wind Ninjutsu, but there was no way they would be able to keep up, not when both of them were still constrained by hand seals.

"Nii-san, I need water!" Nagato insisted.

I paused in my barrage to direct a giant bullet of water into the ground beneath me. It wasn't pleasant for Nagato to somehow take control of the water before I completed the jutsu. I shook it off as Nagato shot a widespread spray of water. When I added my wind Ninjutsu to it, the ice froze and shot towards the two in a barrage of icy senbon. I pulled back the wind Ninjutsu a moment before Minato and Kushina found themselves riddled with holes. Instead they were pelted with the equivalent of giant raindrops, soaking them.

The four of us stood there in shock for a long moment. "Well, ice is supposed to be a bloodline, but that works just as well," I commented. "Let's save that for when we really need to kill someone," I suggested quietly to Nagato.

The boy nodded quickly. Minato and Kushina were stunned at how close they had come to getting killed in a simple spar.

While Nagato still needed hand seals to focus his chakra and control the general direction of his jutsu, he had already gained more control of the actual shape of the jutsu and it deviated from the wild rush of water it was several days before. Either it was because he was a genius, or the Rinnegan was indirectly helping him. I wasn't sure, but it worked, though I should probably make sure Nagato had a lot more practice applying it than a single spar.

I made note of a lot of things Nagato needed to work on.

Both Minato and Kushina were going to wake up sore in the morning. Kushina fell to her knees.

"I yield. I can't do this," Kushina choked, pressing her hand against her side.

I stared at Minato. He had done a good job deflecting my merciless barrage of Ninjutsu, but it took more chakra than he wanted to admit. He charged forward, brandishing two kunai. I signed for Nagato to stay out of the fight. I started out with a rush of senbon, which Minato deflected and kept charging. In straight Taijutsu, I couldn't win, but with close-range Ninjutsu on my side, he was the one struggling. I was ruthless once his initial attack failed and forced him onto the defensive. While Minato was able to overcome the problems of his size in Taijutsu, and he had passable skill in Genjutsu, but he couldn't overcome the fact that the chakra reserves of a non-Uzumaki child could only grow so much.

Minato had the reserves of a mid-level Chuunin, which was impressive, but it would be several years before his reserves would be anywhere near Jōnin level. Kushina had better genetics in that department, putting her on equal footing, nearly giving her the upper hand, even though she was a half-year younger than Minato and a girl. The way I repeatedly flooded my body with Kyuubi chakra stretched my Chakra coils to the point where they would nearly rupture and the Kyuubi would heal them, provided a massive boost to how much chakra my body could hold, which boosted how much chakra my body produced etcetera. My reserves and control were ridiculous even if my application was severely lacking in proportion.

Unlike the handful of times I sparred with him before, I didn't hold back my more brutal assaults, mostly because nothing connected. While Minato managed to deal out almost a dozen debilitating strikes, I recovered in seconds or shrugged it off as if it never happened. It only took one solid hit to his ribs to take him down. Minato sprawled out onto his back, struggling to draw in air. He tried to grab the kunai that had fallen beside him, but I kicked it away.

"You're done, Minato." I pulled the strip of bandage off my belt. "I know Jiraiya gave you the bell test when you graduated from the Academy. This is absolutely pathetic." I looked at Kushina. "An Uzumaki ought to be much better than that." My gaze shifted to Minato. "And you call yourself a Chuunin of Konoha," I scoffed, continuing to look between them. "Have you learned nothing in your three years of being shinobi? When both of you charged me, did you even have a plan or did you just want to beat the snot out of me and each other?"

Neither of them met my gaze.

"The two of you spent nearly five years practically inseparable, but now you're stabbing each other over a technicality. Kushina, you knew he didn't understand your situation or why you made the choices you did. Minato, you felt betrayed and never stopped to think there might be more going on behind the scenes."

Both of them burned with shame. Nagato slid into my shadow and I clenched my fists.

"You're disgusting. If that is how you're going to treat the people closest to you, I want nothing to do with either of you." I threw down the strip of bandage and marched away from them. I barely made it to the door and slam it shut before the tears started to fall. I clamped my hands over my mouth to hold back a sob.

Nagato hugged me around the middle. "I'm sorry, Nii-san."

"There's nothing you can do about it, Nagato," I murmured back and laid my head on his, hugging him back tightly. "They'll come around soon, right? They'll be friends again and things can go back to normal, right?"

"Are you tired, Nii-san?"

I nodded. I was utterly drained emotionally. It was completely unfair that I was clinging to Nagato for emotional support. He was six, and mentally, I was supposed to be over thirty. I knew it made him feel better to be doing something helpful, but a little voice in the back of my head kept nagging that he shouldn't have to. Konoha was supposed to be a place that protected children. Konoha wasn't supposed to be a place where children felt they had to be a part of the quid pro quo system.

* * *

 _Author's note: Don't forget to tell me what you think! Even if it is just a winky face from the mysterious anon!_


	53. Chapter 53

When I finally regained my composure, Nagato started to pull me back towards the room where Ise and Fusō were still spending time with their new daughter.

"I want to see my little sister again," Nagato explained. I just shrugged and let him pull me along. When he pushed open the door, Ise turned toward us in surprise. Fusō lay on the bed, asleep. "Sorry I ran off." Nagato's apology was barely audible.

"It's fine, Nagato-chan. Have you thought of a name?" Ise murmured, his attention completely on the sleeping infant in his arms.

"Natsuki," Nagato responded with conviction.

"That's a beautiful name," Fusō answered, not as asleep as I thought she was.

I nudged Nagato towards his father and sister and sat down on the bed beside Fusō. She immediately sat up to put her arms around me and carded her fingers through my hair. I knew better than to tell her exactly why I was upset, but I still secretly liked the feeling of being held. I didn't feel guilty leaning on her like I did when I found myself relying on Nagato.

"You alright, Kichiro?" She asked quietly.

"I'll be fine," I assured her, but I didn't give any effort towards making sound convincing. I just turned my face into her shoulder. Emotionally, I was absolutely exhausted and I just wanted to sleep, even though barely half the day had passed.

"If my husband is going to steal the two children I carried around for nine months each, I guess I'll just take his best friend's child as ransom."

I laughed at that and relaxed against her side.

"Anyways, it's almost lunchtime, right? I better—"

"I'll make lunch for the kids," Ise interrupted quickly.

"I'm not an invalid!" Fusō retorted playfully.

"You just gave birth," he retorted.

"I'll show you—" She threatened and nearly knocked me off the bed as she chased him out the door. Luckily, Nagato was holding little Natsuki. The boy shifted awkwardly.

"Nii-san? Natsuki-chan smells icky."

I honestly wasn't sure if Fusō and Ise's swift departure was planned or completely coincidental, but they got out of changing the infant's diaper. I was so very tempted to feign sleep and let Nagato figure out the dirty diaper problem, but I stood up and started to sift through the dresser with baby things piled around and hanging out of it. It didn't take long for me to track down the diapers and change Natsuki into a clean one. It wasn't very neatly done, diaper changes were generally the purview of the Genin and civilian orderlies or pre-medics rather than the certified medics, so I wrapped Natsuki in a blanket to hide the fact. I knew Kakashi was far more aware of his surrounding than an infant ought to be, and it didn't take long for me to realize that the same held true for Natsuki, though to a much lesser extent, she was a month younger after all. She wasn't as cognizant as Kakashi was, but she was perfectly aware of her surroundings.

"You're going to have everyone you meet wrapped around your little finger by the end of the month," I grumbled at her under my breath.

"What was that, Nii-san?" Nagato asked.

"Nothing," I responded as I settled the infant in his arms. "Enjoy being a slave to her whims for the rest of your life."

He looked at me without comprehension.

(-_-)

Besides the bustle of taking care of an infant, the stress of which was almost nonexistent since there were almost a dozen hands willing and able to help out, nothing happened for the rest of the day. Natsuki barely fussed and, to my surprise, wasn't upset by the amount of attention she was receiving. Somehow, Nagato and I ended up caring for Natsuki most of the day while the adults worked because we technically didn't have a job to do. While Nagato entertained the newborn with miniature explosions, I watched Kaede draft healing seals. It didn't take much prompting for her to start explaining them to me. Apparently, I could save myself a quarter of the effort it took to heal with some strategic seals. Making the switch to healing with Fūinjutsu might have had a net benefit in the long run, but it didn't have the versatility needed for combat medicine. I wasn't particularly interested, but the diversion was worth it until Nagato's toy explosions grew too big and too close to Natsuki. It wasn't dangerous, Nagato was almost overprotective of his new baby sister, but they were obnoxious and the smoke was becoming an issue inside the house.

Everyone quickly drifted off to their respective beds after dinner. Nagato had opted to stay with his parents, so I commandeered his room. Technically, I had my own bedroom a few doors down, but it was empty except for a bed and extremely obvious that no one slept there.

In the middle of the night, I was awoken from a dead sleep by the door silently sliding open. I stayed perfectly still, feigning sleep until the intruder, who I couldn't identify from the almost-perfectly-concealed chakra signature, was within arm's reach. One hand reached towards me, and before it could touch me, I twisted and grabbed the arm, pulling the person off-balance and driving my elbow into their throat. A second strike to their chest, strengthened by chakra and with one foot braced against the ground, sent them flying into the second intruder, throwing them both out into the hall. As they landed, I recognized Minato's blond hair practically glowing in the dim light.

"What the hell are you two thinking? It's the middle of the night!" I growled, careful to keep my voice down to avoid waking anyone up.

Both of them shifted to their knees and pressed their foreheads against the floor, their apologies sincere, if incoherent.

"Enough, it's not me you should be apologizing to, it's each other." I lightly kicked Minato's shoulder since I couldn't see Kushina well enough to avoid kicking her head.

"Y-you're not angry?" Kushina asked.

"No, I'm not angry. You worked it out in the end and fixed the problem. Both of you have a mission in the morning, get some sleep."

I turned to go back to bed. "Wait!" Minato rasped, massaging his throat. I glanced over my shoulder at him. "That's it?"

"What more could there be?"

"We were stupid enough to nearly destroy everything, almost killed each other—"

"You learned your lesson and no irreparable harm was done."

"You said you wanted nothing to do with us," Kushina pointed out weakly. I could barely hear her.

"Good to know you still believe every word I say."

"No one is that forgiving," Minato responded.

"What do you expect me to do? Make you beat each other up again or disown you? That wouldn't accomplish anything."

Kushina flinched.

I took a quick step forward and laid a hand on each of their shoulders so I could see them both somewhat clearly in the dim light. "I'm going to be perfectly honest with you, no manipulation, double, or hidden meanings. I can't promise to be there for the two of you anymore. I can't promise your safety or happiness or anything really. I can't, in good conscience, continue to allow you to believe you can unconditionally rely on me. I—"

"Nii-san, you sound like you're saying goodbye," Kushina choked.

"No!" I responded vehemently.

"Nii-san?" Minato murmured cautiously.

I turned my attention towards him.

"I want to apologize."

"For what?"

"Before you left for Iwa, I yelled at you and I shouldn't have. I yelled at you and accused you of things that weren't true. I said you never fought back and I was wrong. You do fight. You fight all the time, but you don't fight like everyone else. It's subtler."

"I forgive you," I responded, cutting off the rest of whatever he wanted to say. I wasn't entirely sure what he meant, nor did I care. "You both have a mission in the morning, go get some sleep." Minato understood something, nodded once to me, his jaw set in determination and turned towards the stairs. I expected Kushina to follow, but she stood there, shifting awkwardly.

"Nii-san? Can you promise to be here when we get back?"

"I'm still in ANBU, so I can't promise that, but I will see you again. I can promise that, okay?" Even if it was in the afterlife.

Kushina nodded and hugged me tightly. When she didn't let go for a few seconds, I felt slightly awkward standing in the middle of the hallway in the dead of night. "Thank you, Nii-san."

"You're welcome." She scampered off without another word, leaving me in the hallway. I knew I wasn't going to sleep for the rest of the night, so I wandered into the library. The books and scrolls were obviously a part of the Uzumaki library Kushina had liberated before Uzu's downfall. It was nothing sensitive, but still plenty to learn.

As a rule, Uzumaki were generally short on patience when it came to everything except Fūinjutsu. Even so, there were several dozen members of the clan who had recognized the importance of history and wrote over a hundred thick volumes on Uzu's history and any other history they could get their hands on. It wasn't like normal history books, which even the most avid history fan would admit could get quite dry at times. They were told as stories and made history twice as interesting. I managed to make my way through Uzu and Konoha's histories and I had just begun the history of Kiri when the war started and since then I hadn't had any more time to study. It didn't take me long to return to where I left off and I spent the rest of the night reading.

At sunrise, someone knocked on the front door. I put down my book and went to answer it before anyone woke up. On the doorstep was Uchiha Fugaku. "Uzumaki-san," he greeted politely.

I deactivated the security seals and let him in. "Good morning, Fugaku-san" I greeted as he took off his shoes. "I assume you're Kushina and Minato's Uchiha teammate."

"I am," he responded. "Welcome home from Iwa."

"It's good to be back, though I'm not sure anyone should know where I was."

"The clan heads affected all know your situation, and as future clan head, I was briefed."

I accepted his answer without comment.

"My mission with your sister and Minato was moved up by several hours, where are they?"

"Third floor. Would you like me to—"

"Thank you, but I know the way. Have a nice day." He hurried away with his shoes in his hand. In a few seconds, he was headed up the stairs at the back of the house.

I closed the door and stared after him, confused. A door opened and Takeshi emerged from his room a few doors down the hall. I closed the door.

"Kichiro?" Takeshi asked as he squinted in my direction.

"Yeah?"

"Oh, just making sure. One of the kids has been sleepwalking."

"Oh."

"Want to help me make breakfast?"

"Sure." I followed. An hour later, everyone started to trickle into the dining room. The kids were half asleep and most of the adults kept sending longing looks back towards the bedrooms, but everyone was there except for Kushina and Minato. Fortunately, everyone perked up once they started eating.

Halfway through the meal, Sakumo appeared in the window with Kakashi in his arms. He was in his full Jōnin uniform. I frowned.

"What the hell happened this time?" I stood up and demanded as Sakumo landed on the floor.

"We just received intelligence that several teams are headed straight for an ambush on their way to the Iwa lines."

"Why—"

"They're medic teams. Half of Konoha's medics are headed into a trap and there isn't any way to send them a message fast enough."

"What idiot put that many medics in one place at once?" I growled.

"There was a spy who managed to get deep enough into the mission room and switched things up. No one caught it until we got intel of the ambush."

"Why are you telling me?"

"I wasn't supposed to, but I need to know if the Kyuubi can increase your stamina, I already know you can stave off the need for sleep. Unless you can make it, no one has the stamina to run at the speed they need to in order to intercept them."

"If I use the Kyuubi, the only limit in this equation is my speed. How far out are they?"

"Konoha has pushed Iwa back to just past the Iwa-Kusa border. The ambush is at the Kannabi bridge. The medical team is almost four days out, travelling with a major supply run manned by twenty-one Genin, four Chuunin, two Jōnin, and an unknown number of ANBU."

"Kannabi bridge is a six-day trip at Genin speed, correct? Which route are they taking?"

"Route four."

"If I take route seven and eat while running, I can reach the bridge in two days and backtrack until I intercept the team. If you can get me orders to change the route, I'll be ready to leave in twenty minutes."

"Two days is cutting it close."

"It's almost fall into an ambush or definitely fall into one."

"We can take Kakashi for an hour so you can deal with everything," Ise volunteered.

"Meet me at the gates in twenty." Sakumo handed the baby off to Ise and vanished. I leapt up from the table and raced upstairs. I only had one Chuunin uniform, and I hoped Kushina had brought it home when I had changed for the confrontation with the Hokage about the Uzumaki's status in the village. Sure enough, it was in the bathroom cupboard on the third floor. I dumped the seal with all my weapons and ANBU armor on the bed and rushed to put everything on as fast as possible. It took me exactly six minutes, and I ran down the stairs, tying on my hitai-ate in the process. I skidded to a stop in front of Nagato, who stood in the doorway of the dining room.

"Sorry, kiddo," I murmured. "I'll be back soon, I swear." I gave him a brief hug and waved at everyone before dashing out. I could have shunshined to the gates, but I had more than ten minutes, so I just leapt across the rooftops hidden by a weak Genjutsu. I arrived at the gate with a minute to spare and crouched above them as they opened for the morning. I knew I was breaking at least a dozen rules, but only shinobi could have seen through the Genjutsu. They didn't really care as long as I wasn't hurting anything. Within the minute, Sakumo arrived at the Chuunin deployment point and glanced around. I jumped down and landed heavily in front of him.

Sakumo flinched at my sudden appearance and held out two scrolls. I reached for them but he pulled them out of my reach. "Your orders are extremely specific, you are to take route seven to intercept the medical platoon, order them to avoid the Kannabi bridge and travel with them to their destination. At that point, you are to join the first squad headed back to Konoha, no matter who they are. No matter what happens, you are not to deviate from those orders."

"I can do more good on the lines than I can in the village."

"Iwa is raging for blood, yours in particular. If word gets around that you're on the lines, Iwa will likely send everything they've got at you. The Kyuubi is a fair trade for the Gobi and Yonbi." Sakumo reached up and grabbed my hitai-ate, readjusting it so it covered my hair bandanna-style. "You need a haircut," he commented, looking at me critically. I frowned, and after a second, he reached into his kunai pouch and pulled out a navy facemask. "I'm not going back to Suna anytime soon, so you can borrow this to give you some kind of anonymity."

"I could just use a Henge."

"There's no way anyone will believe you if you show up with a Henge on."

"Right."

"Here are your orders." He handed me the scroll. "And here are the orders to change routes." He handed me the other and I tucked them both in the part of the Chuunin vest meant exclusively for orders. They were inside the vest, a zipper disguised as a seam on the left side of the vest under my arm. "The current security code is 'white snake fled' and duress code is 'white snake lives'."

I nodded firmly and leapt away.

Five minutes later, I was out of sight of the village.

Until I started training with Sakumo, I never liked to run. Running a seven-minute mile felt good, but the feeling wasn't enough for me to ever voluntarily go out and run. When I started training with Sakumo, the speed boost made it ten times more enjoyable. Coupled with the fact I was leaping through the trees, the adrenaline rush was exhilarating. I took far too many risks when running across Konoha. I leapt the gaps between trees that were too far apart to be completely safe, ran faster than most would dare in anything but a fight, and I even occasionally used my hands and chakra to swing through the trees for several hundred feet.

For obvious reasons, I wasn't worried about injuries stopping me for more than a few minutes.

Around noon, I burned through the last of my reserves and tapped into the Kyuubi's. By the end of the day, the thrill of racing through the trees at an impossible speed wore off and I started wishing for music or something to listen to.

I scowled at the fact that I was only a quarter of the way to my destination. I tried to engage the Kyuubi in conversation, but he wasn't interested in talking.

I spent the night and most of the next day incredibly bored. It wasn't until evening fell that I started to look for traps that had been left behind during skirmishes or set to try and injure or kill an unwitting shinobi. Most traps were too slow to catch me as I raced through, but I almost ran straight through a web of ninja wire meant to slice someone to pieces. I flipped over it and kept running, my heart hammering for the next few miles and my senses hyper-aware. Wire traps and Fūinjutsu traps were the only thing I needed to watch out for. A wire trap could cut me to pieces and kill me faster than I could heal, while any decent Fūinjutsu trap was inescapable. I wasn't confident enough in my own Fūinjutsu skill to escape a trap.

When the sky began to lighten, I slowed my pace and deviated from the original route to follow the route the medics and the supply line was supposed to take. When I crossed their projected path, eight miles away from the Kannabi bridge, a kilometer outside of even the most paranoid shinobi's scouting range. I scouted for a kilometer on both sides, quickly establishing that I was ahead of them or it was too late for me to stop them. I jogged back towards Konoha, making sure to stay on the ground.

I stopped drawing on the Kyuubi's chakra when I felt a group enter my sensing range and headed in their direction at a walk. Twenty minutes later, I intercepted everyone. The moment the first person entered my sight, an alarm rang out. Three seconds later, someone appeared behind me—two people grabbed my arms and slammed me facedown the mat of leaves, the tip of a kunai digging into the soft skin behind my ear.

"Identify yourself," the man on my right ordered.

"Uzumaki Kichiro, Chuunin, registration number zero-zero-seven-three-zero-nine."

"Purpose."

"To deliver urgent orders." I flinched as the one on my left opened the pouch meant for orders and pulled out my mission and the orders for the medic squad and supply line. I deduced that the two holding me down were Jōnin, ANBU, or a combination of both. Protocol only allowed Jōnin to access another shinobi's orders without their explicit permission or incapacitation.

"Security code?"

"White snake fled."

The one on my right pulled off one of my gloves and glanced at the palm of my hand. "It's him," the one on my left concluded and the two picked me up off the ground. "Damn, kid, you must be a stamina freak to be able to make that run in forty-six hours."

I shrugged and dusted myself off.

The right one returned my glove. "Did the Hokage figure out who the idiot who put half the medical force in one deployment is?" He asked.

"It was a spy. The Kannabi bride has been trapped by Iwa. I'm here to deliver orders to change routes. I don't know any details. Anything vital should be in the orders. It's the scroll in your right hand. The other scroll is my mission."

The man on the left handed the scrolls to the one on my right, whom I was almost certain was the leader. "I'm Yamanaka Takuya, and this is Matsuoka Shiro." He introduced once he finished skimming the two documents. I should have guessed that Takuya was part of the Yamanaka clan, but I brushed it off.

"Nice to meet you," I bowed politely. "Uzumaki Kichiro, but you already know that."

"Before we head back to the rest of the group, am I correct in surmising that you are wearing a mask because of the Jinchuuriki situation with Iwa and their particular hatred of you?"

"Correct."

"Then I'll introduce you as Aoi, a Chuunin scout who stumbled across Iwa's trap at the Kannabi bridge and was placing warning tags to ward off the next group who came through."

I nodded. Any ninja worth their salt would know it was a lie, but the circumstances would deter anyone from investigating the claim, especially once the ANBU who was supposed to be with the group approached me as was protocol.

The Jōnin guided me back to the camp. I was a little off-put at the fact that it was in the opposite direction as I had seen the person from. Before leaving, I glanced back at where I had seen someone, and noted that it was only a blue and green sheet wrapped around a thin tree.

"Everybody up!" Shiro ordered as soon as we reached camp. "Double time! We need to move!"

I was surprised that the camp wasn't fully awake yet. Even Genin should have risen with the sun, and they should have started moving almost a half hour before. Before I could comment on the break in protocol, Takuya put a hand on my shoulder.

"They're fresh Genin," he explained. "They've been weighed down with supplies this whole trip, and the Hokage gave us three extra days to get there."

It was a valid reason, but I couldn't help feeling a little annoyed. The Genin emerging were all between ages nine and twelve. I knew Kushina and Minato weren't the best baselines, but they were Chuunin by the time they were nine.

After a minute, I started to wonder when I stopped thinking of twelve-year-olds as children and started to think of them as soldiers.

I put it aside to think about later as Takuya introduced me. The camp quickly refocused their attention on packing up as an ANBU landed in front of me. He or she made several hand seals that were too fast for me to see. I flinched as his chakra, it was definitely male chakra, washed over me for the briefest of seconds. A heartbeat later, the ANBU vanished.

The Jōnin led us almost to the Kusa-Taki border to avoid all potential traps by the Iwa shinobi who had snuck through Konoha's line of defense.

To my surprise and relief, the rest of the trip went incredibly smoothly. We reached the supply post before the deadline and the Genin split off into teams with a Chuunin or Jōnin leader and several medics. The first team to head back was the Genin delivering supplies. They were the only experienced team among the Genin, thus the only team that remained unsupervised.

As we set out to leave the second the supplies were delivered, inventoried, and a new list of requests was handed to the elder of the three Genin, I got a very bad feeling. Not one of the 'I am going to do something stupid' feelings, but one of the 'that lurch of my stomach was the handbasket picking me up to carry everything to hell' feelings.


	54. Chapter 54

It wasn't until they introduced themselves that I realized exactly who I was travelling with. The team was made up of three boys, and all three had any identifying traits concealed by the unofficial, nondescript Genin uniform and overlong hair. They wore loose, undyed kimonos with sleeves that were barely short and tight enough not to get in the way if they needed to fight. The kimono went down to the middle of their thighs and they wore loose pants in the same style of the Chuunin uniform, without the bandages to secure the cuffs. Instead, they were tied with a strip of rope. They wore regular sandals, though the soles were thicker and provided much more traction than regular civilian sandals. The fabric was loose enough and strategically placed faded spots drew the eye away from the kunai pouches and any visible weapons. If they were paying attention, a Jōnin would probably have been able to tell that the fabric of their clothing was threaded with metal and instead of the light, cool material of regular civilian clothes; their clothes were similar to burlap. If it wasn't for the way they held themselves and the fact I recognized the uniform, I would have assumed them to be lower-class farmer's children.

Senju Nawaki bounded forward and introduced himself immediately. The other two just sent me wary and slightly frightened looks. A few seconds later, I recognized the Hokage's eldest son, Sarutobi Itsuki. I almost couldn't place the last boy. Hyuuga Hiashi had a strip of cloth tied over his eyes to hide the scarring from the botched mission I sent him on. My stomach knotted.

I outranked them, so I gave the order to move out that morning. I set a brutal pace for Genin, but we managed to make it out of Kusa by the end of the day and into the relative safety of the Land of Fire. I called for a halt as soon as it grew too dark for Genin to operate properly. Sick of the suspicious looks, I jerked off my mask and hitai-ate as soon as we found a place to camp. "If it wasn't for the fact that you're Genin, I would bench your asses for letting your minds wander while running through unsecured territory. Now, what the hell do you find so interesting about my back that you're forgetting to run basic security scans? Nawaki-san, this has nothing to do with you. Go secure a ten-yard perimeter to the north, south, and east. Leave the west quadrant alone, there's an explosive trap there and I'm not going to be the one taking you home to your sister as a pile of charred bones."

Nawaki scampered off.

"Why didn't you tell me you were alive?" Itsuki demanded.

"I'm a Chuunin, you are a Genin. Hokage's son or not, my status and whereabouts are above your clearance level."

"But—"

"If you have a problem with security procedures, take it up with your father, but I assure you that he will not make an exception for you. Hiashi-san, your turn."

"Has my father approached your clan about removing the Caged Bird seal from my brother?"

That was not what I was expecting. "I wouldn't know anything about that. I'm only the clan leader on paper and when they want to piss someone off without repercussions."

Hiashi gritted his teeth. "He promised."

"So, you're not angry at me?"

Hiashi shook his head in confusion.

"That's a first. Itsuki-san, is there anything else?"

"What happened after I left Iwa?"

"You need clearance from your father for that information, I was there and lived through it and I don't even know a quarter of it."

"When did you get back?"

"Ditto."

He clenched his fists in frustration and opened his mouth to ask another question.

"I am going to continue stonewalling you, no matter how you word your questions. If you continue to attempt to access classified information, I will bench you so hard you won't be getting up for a very long time, and if you think your father will overturn it, you're an idiot."

Nawaki hovered at my elbow as Itsuki flinched away.

"Hiashi-san, can you keep watch even though you're blind?"

"Yes."

"Then you have second watch tonight. I'll take first. We're moving out at the beginning of third watch."

Nawaki frowned. "Third watch is—"

I shot him a sharp look daring him to protest.

"Acknowledged."

I looked at the other two and they nodded apprehensively. First watch started at first dark, second watch started around eleven and lasted until around two. Third watch lasted until first light. It was the time of night when nothing moved. For Genin, it was both the safest and the most dangerous. It would be exhausting, but on the stretch of route we were taking, the sun would be at our backs. If I could get them running fast enough, our only danger would be traps, and by this point, I was just retracing my route from before. I wasn't stupid enough to rely on memory, but there wasn't a very high chance of any new traps having been set.

I scouted out further than I let Nawaki go just to be certain, before returning to find Hiashi beginning to gather firewood. "No fires. We're still too close to the lines. Forage or eat the rations." Hiashi blanched and Nawaki started to whine. "All three of you should know better."

"Sensei lets—"

"I am neither your sensei, nor a Jōnin. I could hide the flames and smoke easy enough with a Genjutsu, but I can't hide smell well enough for it to matter."

"But—" Itsuki protested in a tone that would have fit better on someone Nagato's age.

"No fire."

The rest of the night and the next day passed smoothly. I slowed the pace slightly to compensate for their weariness. Everyone settled down for camp that night. I assigned Nawaki to first watch and told Itsuki he would take third while I had second, but I had no intention of waking him up. When morning came, Itsuki looked slightly betrayed by the fact, but didn't comment. At our pace, we would make it back to Konoha by the morning of the seventh day since leaving the outpost. Most Jōnin could make the run back from the Kusa border in four days, a few could make it in three, but everyone else took five to six. I didn't dare push the Genin too hard. The bad feeling in my stomach only grew as we travelled back.

We had three-quarters of a day left before we reached Konoha. I was almost ready to drop my guard when I felt someone enter the outside range of my normal sensing. They felt slightly familiar, like someone I only met once or twice, but I could tell they were far more powerful than anything I could handle and most certainly not friendly. I was terrified by the fact that there were two of them. I didn't recognize the second one at all. I motioned for the Genin to stop.

An intense feeling of déjà vu washed over me as Orochimaru appeared in front of us in a puff of smoke.

"Shit," I growl. The Genin nearly ran into me as I stopped dead. I tried to reach into my weapons pouch for a defensive seal, but Orochimaru flicked a kunai faster than I could see. It punched through the heel of my hand. I hissed in pain but put my arm out to stop the Genin from attacking.

"Language, language, Kichiro-kun," he responded smoothly.

"What do you want?" He threw a second kunai, but this time I was ready, and caught it before it went straight through Hiashi's head. The blade bit into my hands but I ignored it throwing the kunai at his feet.

I healed my hand as quickly as possible while Orochimaru studied us. I was stalling. I had never truly attempted to transform into the Kyuubi, but it would be my only chance against Orochimaru, if it was actually him. I still hadn't positively identified either person, but I could feel someone standing behind us.

"Who's your friend?" I asked when Orochimaru only smirked at my first question.

"No one you would know," he responded.

I could feel Nawaki trembling in anger behind me. "Traitorous bastard!" He growled.

"My, my, Nawaki-chan, that's a lot of venom for someone who wants to be Hokage."

"He's baiting you, Nawaki."

Nawaki just growled.

"I just wanted to leave a little message. Goodbye." He vanished in a puff of smoke.

"Shit!" I snarled and grabbed the closest two Genin, Hiashi and Itsuki, and threw them as far away as I could. Somehow, Nawaki noticed the explosive tags coating the branch at the same moment I did and braced my back before throwing me after them. The branch exploded and I barely managed to coat my skin with the Kyuubi's chakra to avoid most of the damage from being in close proximity to the explosion. "Suicidal idiot," I screamed and leapt back towards Nawaki the second my feet hit the ground, clearing the smoke away with a gust of wind. His chakra signature was already starting to fade as I landed beside him. Those were Uzumaki-level explosives. Had they been properly timed and placed, they would have killed all four of us instantly. Instead, whomever attacked us treated them like normal explosive tags.

The worst part was that Nawaki was still conscious, screaming in pain. If I knocked him unconscious, I wasn't sure I would be able to wake him back up. His uniform was probably what saved his life, but it didn't survive the explosion. The front of his body, which faced away from the explosion, was covered in second-degree burns. I didn't even look at those as I rolled him onto his stomach. The skin on the entire back of his body was gone. I could see the vertebrae of his back and most of the muscle had been incinerated, showing patches of his shoulder blades.

"Itsuki, I need as much water as you can get me," I ordered as the other two Genin ran up. "Real water, not made by chakra. Hiashi, hold down his arms so he can't roll over." Nawaki couldn't feel the damage done to his back, and I couldn't knock him out to stop him from fighting the treatment he desperately needed. Itsuki hurried off as I worked to repair the damaged blood vessels. I didn't look up to see how Hiashi was handling it. As soon as I finished healing the major blood vessels, I started on the lymphatic system. Itsuki returned with several canteens of water. I grabbed one and poured it on the center of Nawaki's back, immediately incorporating it into his body before he died of dehydration. When Nawaki's immune system and circulatory system were mostly repaired, I turned my attention to trying to unsuccessfully regrow his skin.

I wasn't sure how long I struggled, but eventually another set of hands joined mine.

"I've got him now, Kichiro, tend to yourself."

Slowly, I pulled back. As soon as I detached myself from the healing, someone picked me up by my vest and hauled me several feet away. Hiashi was pulled in front of me and I automatically reached forward to heal them. There were only minor burns, mine were twice as bad. I turned to the person nearest me. For a second, I thought I was looking at two Hiashis before I realized it was Hizashi.

"Itsuki, come here, Hiashi, report." I started healing Itsuki while Hiashi reported what happened.

"We were headed back from delivering supplies under the command of Medic Uzumaki Kichiro. We were intercepted by an unknown shinobi who seemed familiar with the entire party. Genin Senju Nawaki addressed the shinobi as a traitor. Medic Uzumaki attempted to discover the intentions of the shinobi, which were to leave a message. Medic Uzumaki then threw Genin Sarutobi Itsuki and myself off the branch, then Genin Senju threw Medic Uzumaki after us and was caught in the subsequent explosion. By the time Genin Sarutobi and I returned to our teammates, Medic Uzumaki had already begun medical treatment."

"Uzumaki, what were the original injuries?"

"Second degree burns to myself, Hiashi, and Itsuki. Nawaki had third-degree burns, that included tissue damage, to fifty percent of his body and second-degree burns to the rest."

"Sarutobi, anything to add?"

"The shinobi who accosted us appeared to have been Orochimaru."

"I thought so too, but Orochimaru knows how to apply Uzumaki explosive tags for both lethal and non-lethal uses. He would never have messed up as badly as whomever laid the trap did." I corrected.

"The chakra signatures didn't match," Hiashi volunteered.

"There was someone else present as well, but they were too far away for me to get any information on them."

Tsunade finished growing Nawaki's skin back. I wasn't entirely sure when Nawaki had stopped screaming, but now he was only crying against Tsunade's shoulder while she healed his face of burns and coaxed him to drink water from one of the canteens Itsuki had refilled. Nawaki's pack of supplies had been completely destroyed, so Tsunade pulled a blanket out of Hiashi's bag and wrapped it around the naked child.

He wouldn't be going on missions until he regained the muscle mass that had been burned away. I felt bad for the kid and was extremely pissed at how unnecessary his injuries were. With the Kyuubi's chakra, I could have come out of the explosion in his place with only severe burns that I could have easily healed rather than losing at least a quarter of my body mass. Medical Ninjutsu could do a lot, but healing on the scale Nawaki needed to return to duty anytime soon was something I was incapable of and Tsunade couldn't afford the energy needed for such a feat, if she was even capable of it.

She stood up, Nawaki cradled in her arms.

"Kichiro and Itsuki, stick together. Hizashi, you're with your brother on point, Byakugan active, top speed. I'll take rear. Kichiro, Itsuki, take center."

"I should be running point and the Genin should be in the center," I contradicted.

Tsunade glared at me until I backed down. "You're the only ranked person here who isn't emotionally compromised right now, so you're guarding Itsuki, the most likely target." She explained.

"I still ought to be running point, but fine."

A few seconds later, we took off. Once the sun set and Hizashi's Byakugan lost its effectiveness. Tsunade put me on point, Hizashi in the rear, and herself and the Genin in the center. I smirked at her when she made the change, but she only scowled back at me. "You're forgetting that I'm your physician."

When no one was listening, I hissed back, "You're forgetting I'm in ANBU."

"Trainee, not agent."

"Yet."

We made it back just after two in the morning. "Itsuki and Hiashi, go report to the mission office. Hizashi, go home. Kichiro, go report to the Hokage," Tsunade ordered.

I didn't like it, but I knew better than to disobey. I hurried through the deserted streets until I reached the Hokage Tower. As I marched inside, the Hokage seemed to materialize beside me. I flinched in annoyance but didn't say anything as he led me up to his office. "Mission status?" He asked as the door swung shut behind me.

"Successfully completed."

"Mission scroll."

With a bit of fumbling, I pulled it out, along with the orders. With a sudden, muttered fire jutsu, the Hokage incinerated the scrolls.

"You never left this village. Hatake-san took you to ANBU headquarters to test your proficiency in thrown weapons. You scored seven-point-one. Nawaki-kun and his team were attacked a kilometer away from the village gates and he was rushed to the hospital by his teammates and treated just in time. You were called in to help in the middle of the test, which explains your uncharacteristically low score. Report back to headquarters with Nagato-kun to retake the test."

I frowned but nodded once. The Hokage wasn't even looking at me. Something big was going on. I turned on my heel and left. A minute later, I landed on the roof of the Uzumaki house and slipped inside without alerting anyone. Within seconds, I located Nagato and hurried downstairs. He was sleeping in his room, which made my job easier. He followed me without question when I shook him awake. Ten minutes later, we arrived at headquarters. Sakumo was waiting impatiently for us.

Thrown weapons proficiency tests were required every two weeks for Academy-level shinobi and every two months for full-fledged shinobi until they were deemed responsible enough to be training regularly on their own. Commanding officers administered the tests and reported them to the section of the intelligence department that handled the stat records. They weren't difficult, and only Academy students, and about half of Genin, had difficulty maintaining their scores.

All thrown weapons were included on the test, from senbon, to kunai, to hatchets, to a weird Frisbee thing, to short spears, to a bola. There were at least thirty different weapons we had to take down a dummy with. Each weapon was thrown ten times, a point for every lethal or debilitating hit, depending on the weapon, and the scores averaged. Proficiency with hand-to-hand weaponry was at least twice as stringent, but shinobi only had to have proficiency in the primary, secondary, and tertiary weapons wielded by all members of their squad, most of which overlapped.

Most shinobi mastered one throwing weapon and one other weapon. Weapon masters were extremely rare. There were a total of four in the entire shinobi force. I was sure there were several more in ANBU, but weapon masters had to be highly trained from birth in order to declare their specialization before they were thirty.

Weaponry sounded extremely difficult from an outsider perspective, but there were several kata developed specifically to be able to be used with almost any weapon. Once someone mastered throwing kunai, most other single-bladed weapons were a matter of finding the right balance. With shuriken, it only took a bit of practice to pick up similar weapons. Nets, bola, and other thrown objects of similar build were the sticking point, but still necessary because of the logic that if a shinobi knew how to use it, it made it that much easier for said shinobi to escape or combat it. It was sound reasoning, and due to the fact that there wasn't enough time or resources to devote to the cause that learning the basics was the most effective.

In the thrown weapons test, most Chuunin averaged an overall score of eight-point-seven to nine-point-three. Genin averaged a five-point-three to eight-point-nine. Jōnin were required to be able to score at least a nine-point-six on the turn of a dime.

The test itself was throwing each weapon ten times at a dummy while sprinting at top speed from random directions at random angles. By the time I made it to Genin, Sakumo had trained me to the point where I could consistently throw a nine. While Sakumo finished setting up the test, I familiarized myself with the weapons I would be tested over.

Nagato looked sick as he picked up one of the stranger weapons. It looked like a giant caltrop.

"It's just a throwing test."

"I've never held half of these," he whimpered.

I frowned. "How long have you been training?"

"Over a year."

"And you haven't taken a proficiency test yet?"

He shook his head.

"Then I'll go first so you can at least get some idea of what you're supposed to do."

Nagato reached forward to hold my hand, but I shifted so it almost looked like he was trying to get my attention. I knew there were people watching and I put my arm around his shoulders and pulled him close to start muttering the basics of the weapons he would be using. If the Hokage was trying to cover something up, he needed witnesses. Nagato was better off looking like I sheltered him than looking like he needed my company.

For me, the test went smoothly. I scored an eight-point-nine, which was good considering how long it had been since I last touched most of the weapons. For Nagato, it went horribly. With basic kunai, shuriken, and senbon, he was nearly perfect, only missing one shuriken out of all three weapons. Everything else was hit-or-miss. He scored a four-point-one, which was an amazing score for his first time. He didn't let the poor showing affect him until after the test was over. Sakumo led us down the halls of ANBU to a meeting room where Kagami, with his mask on, and Nagato's sensei waited.

We all sat down while Kagami spread out both of our files. I noted that Kagami looked as if he had been dragged through hell and back.

"While you may claim to be brothers, the two of you are barely related. In fact, I'm more closely related to the Shodai, by marriage of course, than you are to each other. As such, ANBU's policy to place direct family on the same team does not apply to you. Considering how long Kichiro has spent out of the village or otherwise engaged with his duties, the only reason I have to consider placing the two of you on the same team, would be Nagato-kun's hero-worship of Kichiro."

Nagato started to protest, but Kagami held up a hand to stop him.

"Kichiro, the year you spent in Iwa and your demonstrations while training with ANBU have shown that you are at the point in your training where you no longer need supervision. Sakumo supports this. Given time and space to polish up your existing skills and someone to help you get to the point you need to be in stealth, you will easily become a full-fledged ANBU agent within two months. You will be constrained strictly to village missions and medic duties until the end of this war, unless there is an urgent need for your Jinchuuriki skills."

I nodded once in acknowledgment.

"Nagato, I am judging you in comparison to other ANBU initiates, not your peers. Based on your score when you entered the Academy's mentorship program, you are a genius. You could pass Konoha's Genin test without a problem. You could probably pass the written Chuunin test as well. Your chakra capacity is greater than Kichiro's before he had the Kyuubi sealed in him, though it is smaller than Kushina's when she first came to Konoha. Your stamina is better than expected. However, your skill in Taijutsu, though limited by your age, is nowhere near where it should be, nor is your Ninjutsu. Like Kichiro, you can use an extremely dangerous Genjutsu, though you are limited to the one, which is more than is expected from most Genin who are not slated for Genjutsu mastery or medical support. Now, your most recent showing in weapons was interesting to say the least. If I didn't consider the fact that you, for some reason, haven't taken a proficiency test, I would have had to draw one of two conclusions: that you threw the test, or have absolutely no skill in weaponry."

Nagato stiffened and I grabbed his arm before he could respond.

"If I take into account your lack of experience with the test, your learning curve appears to be steeper than your file suggests."

Nagato relaxed and I let go, not missing the sharp look Kagami sent me before he refocused on Nagato.

"You have basic knowledge in almost every general shinobi art. Since you are a part of ANBU, you need to decide what area you will be specializing in. While following in Kichiro's footsteps to become a medic would be interesting, Konoha will not be indulging you like she did for Kichiro. You are too far behind him and your chakra control is nowhere near the level that you would be considered to join the medic corps. You have potential in Genjutsu, but considering the dislike you've expressed towards it, just like every other shinobi of your clan has, with only a handful of exceptions, you don't appear to have any dedication to the subject. From what you have displayed today, with time and effort, you could be a weapons master. The ease in which you picked up the kata Kichiro taught you several days ago, and even managed to incorporate it into a spar, you could master Taijutsu. Your chakra capacity means you could be a Ninjutsu specialist second only to Jinchuuriki. Your Uzumaki heritage means you could specialize in Fūinjutsu. I don't expect you to decide on your specific specialization, but I do expect you to decide on your general one now before I make any decisions on your placement."

"He's only six!" I protested.

"You were seven and had none of his meagre skill when you decided to become a medic. Kushina made her decision to be a Ninjutsu-Fūinjutsu specialist long before she arrived in Konoha. Nagato's decision will determine whether he can be placed with you or must be put in the regular ANBU training program." The look Kagami gave me told me to shut up, so I did.

I didn't stop glaring at him.

Though Nagato probably didn't notice, the way Kagami phrased his assessment, Nagato wasn't responsible for being behind expectations. His sensei was the one at fault. The detail about the proficiency test was a major hit against his eligibility as a mentor. Since it was nearly impossible to standardize expectations, being sure that no one was going to accidentally kill themselves or get killed because they had no idea what sharp objects were flying about made the standard tests actually in place even more important.

Considering how much red tape I suspected was around my file, I was surprised Kagami said as much as he did about me with Nagato's sensei in the room.

It didn't take long for Nagato to make his decision. "I want to be a Ninjutsu-Taijutsu specialist."

I winced. If I wanted to declare a secondary specialization, it would have been Taijutsu. Considering I was a Jinchuuriki, my Ninjutsu was only limited by how fast I could learn jutsu. Putting Nagato and I together would severely unbalance our abilities.

Kagami made the note on Nagato's file. "Sakumo, Matsushita-san, you are dismissed."

They left silently.

"Nagato-kun, do you understand what your brother is to this village?"

Nagato frowned. "He's a shinobi of Konoha," Nagato answered easily.

"Are you aware he was considered as a future Hokage?"

His head snapped toward me in surprise. I crossed my arms.

"Despite his protests against any leadership positions, he has been the primary Yondaime candidate since the death of Katō Dan. If it wasn't for the civilian outcry against Jinchuuriki that is slowly and steadily gaining strength, he would be in the process of training to take over the position."

I relaxed at that.

"Yes, he is a Jinchuuriki, and because of this, he has access to an impossible amount of power. Just by living he keeps that power from being turned against us. By being a shinobi, he makes that power work for us."

I rolled my eyes but didn't interrupt. Nagato was openly gaping at me now.

"Not only is he the first male medic, he is also Konoha's second-best doctor, preceded only by the wife of the Sandaime. Considering he's barely finished his first decade of life, he has the greatest potential in the entire shinobi corps. Before I allow you to make a team with Kichiro, I need your answers to several questions."

Nagato refocused on Kagami and nodded.

"Kichiro's life comes before the life of everyone in this village except the Hokage himself. Do you understand that?"

Nagato nodded firmly, his back straight and it felt like he was oozing determination. "I understand." I scowled at Kagami, but I didn't have any grounds to contradict him. If I died, the responsibility of containing the Kyuubi would most likely fall on Nagato's little sister because of her age. I doubted Nagato or Kushina could persuade the Hokage otherwise. There was no way the Kyuubi would be able to remain free in the current state of affairs.

"That means his life is more important than everyone, including yourself and your family, including your new little sister."

I tried to argue that, but too late, I noticed the seals on my chair, freezing me in place. I couldn't even shift my eyes off Kagami. In my peripheral, Nagato's resolve faltered slightly, but he still nodded.

"Do you understand that Kichiro will not care about that fact while in action?"

"I understand."

"Are you aware that Kichiro has a habit of defying authority?"

"Yes."

"Do you understand that, while he may get away with much more than any other shinobi, the same will not hold true for you?"

"I understand."

"Kichiro regularly handles extremely classified information and it is likely that you will occasionally be in the vicinity of that information. Are you aware of the consequences for accessing information above or not included in your clearance?"

"I am."

"Do you understand that information about Kichiro or ANBU is not to be shared with anyone other than your direct commanding officers, of which are myself and the Hokage?"

"I understand."

"Very well." Kagami pulled a hitai-ate out from beneath the table and held it out to Nagato. "Congratulations. You are officially a Konoha Genin." He pulled out an ANBU mask and handed it over. "This makes you an official ANBU initiate, codename Mouse. Your partner and team leader is Uzumaki Kichiro, codename Fox. The two of you will be a first response, threat assessment, and defensive support team."

Kagami released the seals on me, glaring at me as I opened my mouth to argue. After a moment, I quailed under his gaze.

"Kichiro, remember what I told you about chain of command." He warned me. When he was sure I wasn't going to start shouting at him, he continued. "Nagato, Kichiro will be in charge of your training most days, and while he is engaged in his medic duties within ANBU, you will have orders on what to do during that time. If there are no more unforeseen interruptions, Kichiro, every Monday, Thursday, and Saturday you will report to ANBU training ground three at twenty-one-hundred hours for three hours to make up the deficits in your abilities. Provided that you remain on-schedule, you will take the ANBU test in two-months' time. You are to have Nagato ready to take the test fifteen months later. Do you have any questions?"

"Seventeen months isn't enough—" I started, but Kagami cut me off.

"I think you'll find that without the distractions you had, Nagato will progress much more rapidly in his training than you did. The matter is closed." Kagami closed our files and pulled out two folders and a dozen pencils. "These are the written tests the two of you were supposed to take over a week ago. While I am aware that you are both shinobi, I have to ask you please do not cheat. These are meant to be an honest assessment of your knowledge and problem-solving skills. Please attempt to answer every question to the best of your ability. Head to the cafeteria and someone will meet you there to turn them in." He split the pencils between us and handed us each a folder before leaving.

Nagato pulled his chair to the opposite side of the table and opened the folder. I opened mine. There were at least a hundred pages to the test.

Resigned, we got to work.

* * *

 _Author's note: I can't believe that this story now has over a thousand followers! Thank you so much!_


	55. Chapter 55 - Part 9

I finished about twenty minutes before Nagato. Rat was in the cafeteria to pick up our tests.

For the next two months, Nagato and I never left headquarters. For most of that time, it was almost eerie how empty the place was. Even so, on my days as a medic, I had enough people to fill up the entire day. I barely passed the test to make ANBU and continued the thrice-weekly stealth sessions.

Nagato advanced faster than I anticipated. I started him out on a routine similar to what Sakumo used to train me. We started about an hour before sunrise with flexibility and strength exercises, both of which Nagato struggled with. After three hours, we worked exclusively on balance. Nagato had none whatsoever. After the first day, I replaced the slackline with a metal pole on the grass. It took him almost three months to stop rolling his ankle several times a day and breaking his wrist at least once a week. Unless he severely injured himself, I didn't heal anything until the end of the exercise. After five months, I had him try the slackline again, and he was moderately successful.

I made him work on balance every day until he got too frustrated to continue. Normally, he lasted about two hours. We'd stop for a quick, late breakfast, then moved on to training his reflexes and speed. As long as he was concentrating, I eventually figured out that he could track most Jōnin at full speed, though he couldn't move as fast as he wanted. By the middle of the third month, he could beat me in sprints, without chakra assistance, and speed training became an exercise for both of us.

Around noon, we stopped for lunch and spent the afternoon working on actual skills. For the first two weeks, I worked almost exclusively on getting him to a point where he could pass the thrown weapons test. When I tested him after those two weeks, he scored a six-point-eight.

After that, I limited weapons down to an hour and started teaching him Taijutsu katas for two hours. The rest of the time until dinner was spent on chakra control. Since our affinities were different, Nagato practiced Ninjutsu with another agent on the days I worked as a medic. After dinner until twenty-one-hundred hours, I worked with Nagato on other skills, like stealth, survival, sensing, and other skills that were useful but didn't have a place under the other categories.

Three times a week, I met with a man who refused to give his name. He taught me advanced stealth and how to operate without being noticed at all, as well as helped me start noticing people who were trying to hide. Headquarters was a lot less empty when I started to apply those lessons. By the time I took the ANBU test, Nagato almost never noticed my ambushes until it was too late—but it didn't take long for him to improve. On Wednesdays, Nagato joined the group training with the other young ANBU, and I occasionally did as well on the days I didn't have medic work. On those days. we spent the afternoons on teamwork and the evenings getting to know the other ANBU agents. After the first three months, Nagato and I could consistently win against the twins, but it didn't mean much considering they were slated for infiltration work, not combat. It took another two months for us to be able to hold our own against the rest of the young agents, though we still lost most of the time.

At the end of the first five months, I intensified the exercises. On the days I didn't work with the strange man on stealth and sensing, I spent that time working on mastering earth Ninjutsu. Without an affinity, it was twice as hard. Twelve months later, with help from several ANBU who noticed me struggling, I had several jutsus I could do without hand seals, and a little of the control I had over wind. I was well on my way to my secret, unacknowledged goal of becoming an Avatar. The only reason I didn't master them in the proper order was because Nagato was already working on water and in order to balance our Ninjutsu strengths, I needed to learn earth. I would never have the control over earth I needed to fight with it like I fought with wind, but it was damn useful to be able to pull up a wall out of nowhere, or move underground and relocate with my opponent none the wiser, at least until the clone I left in my place got destroyed.

I still relied heavily on tricks and traps to hold my own against stronger opponents, but with my new skill in stealth, the traps became actual threats, rather than distractions.

For the three months before Nagato was scheduled to take the ANBU test, I exchanged the time spent on chakra control with sparring. From what I could tell, almost everyone in ANBU was spoiling for a fight and they liked showing up to help both Nagato and myself gain experience. The older, less trigger-happy ANBU gave pointers, advice, and some days almost took over our training for the rest of the day.

Through the entire seventeen months, I avoided sparring with Nagato as much as possible. Instead, I used our infrequent spars to judge how much Nagato was progressing in comparison to me. When the seventeen months were up, Nagato went to take the test. I asked Kagami for another month, but he refused. It wasn't that I didn't believe in Nagato, but he had only been training to be a shinobi for two-and-a-half years. Sure enough, Nagato failed. It wasn't by much, but it was a major hit to his confidence. If he had a month more, he could have passed. The next test was scheduled for three months later, which Nagato passed with a better score than I had.

Throughout the entire time, the war was like a shadow. There was evidence everywhere, and I was pulled out of training Nagato several times to deal with a team that returned severely injured and twice I was called out to the hospital to help when they had more injured shinobi than they could handle. I couldn't train Nagato to total exhaustion on certain days because ANBU was short-staffed or there weren't enough Jōnin in the village. Training between midnight and four was banned. A month after I passed the ANBU test, food rationing began. Six months before Nagato was first scheduled to take the ANBU test, jutsu was banned from sunset to sunrise. After Nagato passed his test, the two of us started running weekly patrols inside the village to cover for the short-staffed Chuunin. Twice a month, we were called to help the civilian Uchiha at the police station.

Every time I left headquarters, I made a point to leave a note on the dining room table of the Uzumaki house along the lines of: _We are alive and well. Can't give any more details than that. Love you all, Kichiro and Nagato._

The first chance I got, I gave them mine and Nagato's ID number. Since only Jōnin and ANBU had assignments that lasted for more than a few months, they were the only ones allowed unofficial communications from civilian family members with their ID number. There was only about a seventy-five percent chance the messages would reach their recipient and the family was only allowed to send one letter every month. Every month, we received an update from the family, though the letters were almost always written to both of us. The youngest of the orphans, Misaki, wrote to both of us individually every week and sealed her letters onto a single page whenever they put the letters together and sent them off. It was against protocol to respond, since the communications weren't secure, but Jōnin could send messages home with their peers whose assignments were over. ANBU weren't allowed any responses, and it was against protocol for me to tell them we were still alive.

Almost three years after I spirited Nagato away in the middle of the night, I reported in to Kagami to receive the files of those I would be treating that day.

"Jiraiya and his former Genin team are out of the village," he stated instead of handing me the files I expected.

"So?"

"Aside from the Hokage himself, you and Nagato are the only shinobi in the village with a working knowledge of Fūinjutsu."

"So?"

"Iwa has been able to counter, or at least fend off, everything we could possibly throw at them."

"What does any of this have to do with me?"

"We haven't tried Fūinjutsu."

I frowned, hoping he wasn't thinking what I thought he was thinking. "Fūinjutsu is a supplemental skill. No one, not even an Uzumaki, has managed to use it by itself, like Ninjutsu, Genjutsu, even Taijutsu can be used alone. There's no real way to use Fūinjutsu in a war of this scale."

"Your sister has gotten pretty close."

"Let me put it this way. There's active Fūinjutsu, which she uses. It is meant to be used in combat, primarily for defense, and theoretically, with enough preparation, can be used like any other jutsu. For example, it's used to create barriers and function as quick Ninjutsu, and if someone's good enough, they can be applied with a touch. Those abilities are extremely rare and only Uzumaki Mito got anywhere close to what Kushina can do. I and almost every other Uzumaki use static Fūinjutsu, that means I scribble out the seals on paper and slap the paper on people or things or whatever. No matter how many or of what kind of seals I produce, they'll barely make a dent."

"You're missing my point. Did Sakumo tell you about the sixteen Jōnin who wiped out half Iwa's invasion force?"

I nodded.

"They used one of the two major seals that was developed without the help of the Uzumaki." He pulled out a tube of paper from behind his desk that reminded me of a poster. "It was developed primarily by the Nidaime, with help from several of the Senju elders at the time."

I took the paper when it was offered to me and unrolled it, laying it on the floor and crouching to best see it. Kagami walked around his desk and spread out a similar seal matrix on my left.

"The technique you have, Edo Gyakusatsu, banishes souls from this world. In order for it to work, it takes the life of several individuals. The number of banished souls just depends on how much chakra was put into the technique to determine the range of the jutsu, but it is the decision of those who are sacrificing themselves on who is affected and who isn't. The technique I have here, Edo Tensei—"

I flinched.

"Which you seem to recognize, draws souls back from the afterlife. This requires an equal exchange, a life for a life. In case you're wondering, they don't work against each other. We can get another sixteen people to sneak into Iwa and perform the jutsu, but the amount of detail and chakra required to apply the seals properly so they can be used is something only the Nidaime has managed to do. I am the last person with an existing seal, and it was damaged over a year ago."

"Let me guess, you want me to apply a suicide seal to a half-dozen people?"

"More like several dozen volunteers."

"Volunteers who can then be ordered to die on a whim."

"Kichiro—"

"ANBU seals are one thing, they are in case of the worst happening. This isn't a just-in-case seal."

"You of all people know this stalemate cannot continue."

"So as soon as I complete the seals, the will be sent out, most likely to Iwa, in an attempt to murder as much of the population as possible."

"Konoha can't sustain—"

"So, murdering thousands of people, most of whom would be civilians and have next to nothing to do with the war, is the answer?"

"What other solution do you propose?"

"Not this."

"I will order—"

"I dare you!" I snarled back at him.

We glared at each other until a knock at the door interrupted.

"Enter," Kagami growled while I folded both poster-sized pages in half, a polite note to anyone who entered that it was not for their eyes. I knelt stiffly, glaring at the front of Kagami's desk.

"Kichiro-kun." My shoulder twitched at the Sandaime's voice. I was officially in a bad mood now. I decided to ignore him.

"I refuse to assist anyone in suicide, for any reason, unless there is no other option. I refuse to believe this is the only option." I stood up and turned to leave.

"Kichiro, wait," Kagami ordered.

I stopped with my hand on the door but didn't turn around. A battle of wills raged behind me, I could feel it.

"Kichiro—" the Sandaime began.

"If there is nothing else, Kagami-sensei," I interrupted. "I'll be headed to the training grounds."

"The Hokage has a question for you."

"Have a nice—"

" _Kichiro_ ," Kagami growled.

" _Kagami_ ," I retorted immaturely. Kagami pinched the bridge of his nose in a mixture of exasperation and frustration.

"I wasn't aware you let your agents—" the Sandaime tried to scold.

"Sometimes, I think you might fit into my clan better than I do, Hiruzen."

I tried to take the opportunity to slip out the door, Kagami would never chase after me once I left the room. Unfortunately, sometime that year, someone had replaced the 'no one can enter without my permission' seals around Kagami's office with 'no one can enter _or leave_ without my permission' seals. Annoyed, I yanked on the handle once in annoyance and turned around.

"He seems much less mature than when I met with him three years ago."

"For once, he's acting his age," Kagami retorted pointedly.

"And I'm right here," I scowled.

Kagami sent me a glare that told me to shut up and deal with it. "My office, my rules, and neither one of you is allowed to deliberately piss the other off while you are in this room. Am I clear?" He barked like a drill sergeant.

I found myself reacting to the tone without thinking. " _Yes, sir!_ "

Kagami directed his attention towards the Sandaime, who nodded. "Now, Kichiro is the only ninja in this village potentially capable of applying this seal. He has refused to do so. While he can be ordered," Kagami held up a hand to stop my protest before it could be made. "Everyone here is reasonable enough that it is not necessary." He turned to me. "Kichiro, you claim there are other options, do you have any suggestions?"

I scowled. "Almost everything I know about this war is secondhand at best, and aside from patrols and two missions, I haven't been outside of the village in three years."

"Unless Iwa pulls some impossible technique out of thin air, Konoha will win his war. Our shinobi are too motivated and too skilled to allow for anything else. Konoha cannot afford to lose the resources it would take to win if we want to recover in a timely fashion. The quickest way would to decimate their morale. The destruction of who they are fighting for would be the simplest." The Sandaime argued.

"Then go ahead and drop an _atomic bomb_ on Iwa. It may be the simplest, but it won't do squat and you homicidal—"

"Kichiro!" Kagami scolded.

I scowled and shut up.

"What other option is there?" The Sandaime demanded.

I forced myself to calm down. "Practically any tactic is better. If you're thinking about maintaining the village after this war is over, bathing in blood is sure as hell not going to get the job done. Konoha already has a reputation that will help it recover faster than Iwa could hope to. You need to keep everyone on your side, the shinobi, the farmers, the merchants, the craftsmen, everyone."

"Konoha doesn't have resources to waste in that kind of campaign."

"It's not a campaign! It's a moral code!"

"We're shinobi." The Sandaime growled.

Before I could shout at him for being an idiot, Kagami grabbed my arm to get my attention. "He doesn't understand your point, and neither do I. Not everyone sees eye-to-eye with you, so you need to explain yourself."

"Fine," I snapped, stopping to think. "You're operating on the assumption that everyone can put aside their emotions when asked. Civilians don't have the training or motivation to do so. If you can't beat them, join them."

"Civilians have no stake in this war."

"They have more stake than almost anyone else. It's their children and parents and siblings that are fighting. It's their lives that are being forced to adapt. Shinobi operate on nothing, but civilians each build a giant network and the war is compromising their networks."

"They can't—"

"Tell me, what would happen to the war effort if just the non-clan civilian rice farmers stopped working?"

The Sandaime frowned, then paled. I glanced at Kagami who had a similar expression.

"Are you still going to claim they are unimportant? Their opinions matter, they fund at least seventy-five percent of missions during peacetime and provide raw and manufactured supplies in both war and peace. May I please go?"

Kagami sat down on his desk. "Dismissed," he waved his hand at me.

I was out of the room before he could change his mind. As the door shut behind me, I heard the Sandaime protest. Instead of running away, I stopped. Without the security seals active, any shinobi who tried could listen through the door. The tiny flaw in the design was that as long as I was not actively using chakra, the passive seals wouldn't do anything.

I stood outside the door and listened.

"Why did you let him leave?" The Sandaime demanded angrily.

"Keeping him here against his will is only going to needlessly upset the boy. We got the answers we needed."

"I supposed he's finally told you about the unauthorized chakra signature we found in his room three years ago?"

"He never reported anything," Kagami snapped. "I don't think the boy knew about it, and if he did, he didn't think anything of it."

"How do you know he's not spying for whomever—"

"If he was, he has very good reason to. Can we get back to the glaring flaw in our war strategy that a fourteen-year-old boy just pointed out before our enemies can take advantage—"

"Kagami!"

"That boy is as loyal as you are to this village. Give him a little credit."

"That is a risk—"

"I am sick of arguing over him! Jinchuuriki or not, he is _fourteen_!"

"He is a wild—"

"Fine, he is unpredictable, irrational, abrasive, arrogant, mistrustful, and obnoxious, but have you taken ten seconds to look at the results he gets? ANBU is almost twice as successful, we are completing the same amount of missions on half the manpower, and alongside his brother, could defeat almost any Jōnin, so long as he has a good reason to win."

"That kind of power will go to the boy's head."

"Then why is his security clearance as high as mine?" Kagami demanded. "There are at least six other medics who can do his job. The regular ANBU program could train his brother just as effectively. Why? Until you can answer that, can we please focus on the problem in our strategy?"

"There may be a problem with our strategy, but there is still the question of winning this war."

"You are a fool to think you can force the boy put those seals on someone if he doesn't want to. Maybe, you can get someone he respects to persuade him, but don't expect it to work."

"He will obey."

"If you torture him to insanity first," Kagami snarled.

I decided I no longer wanted to hear the conversation and hurried off towards the most likely place Nagato would be training.

Three tries later, I found Nagato running in circles on the ceiling in the basement under a Genjutsu while Panther watched carefully with his hands in the dragon seal, suspiciously low on chakra.

"What is going on?" I asked, flinching as Nagato violently dispelled the Genjutsu and crashed to the ground.

"Again," Nagato snapped, his eyes flickering to me as he ran up the wall.

"No, break," I snapped, watching Panther carefully. "Not everyone has your stamina, Nagato."

"Do we have a mission?" He asked hopefully.

"No. What's the lesson here?"

"Dispelling Genjutsu while in motion and attached to things," Nagato responded, frustrated.

"Not going too well?" I surmised.

"Not at all. It's been all morning and I haven't gotten anywhere."

"Sticking to surfaces with your feet should be second nature, dispelling a Genjutsu should only be conscious to the point where you realize it needs to be done. That's most likely your problem. You know how to do, and can do it perfectly, but you don't have either skill properly mastered. It's the same problem you have with using Ninjutsu without hand seals. Look at it this way: any beginning Fūinjutsu student can copy an explosive seal. They can copy every explosive seal in existence thousands of times, but it doesn't mean they know what the chakra conversion factor does, or what part of the seal is the trigger mechanism. Does that make sense?"

Nagato groaned.

"I've been trying to figure out the problem all morning, you upstaging little brat," Panther growled at me good-naturedly.

"You only work with him a fraction of the time I do. Nagato, do you want to work on fixing it now or later?"

"I want to get this by—"

"You can't put mastery on a timer, you'll just get frustrated." I knelt down and pulled out the sealing kit, drawing a simple training seal Kushina invented shortly after I learned tree climbing and taught it to her a year before the rest of her classmates. It was a wicked little thing, but effective for both training and pranks. I motioned for Panther to get off the floor, and when he did, I activated the seal.

Nagato whimpered comically as he read the seal expanding across the floor of the room. Panther jumped down from the wall to just outside the door while I leapt onto the ceiling.

"Nagato, without an active Dōjutsu, there's no way the human brain can process more than one thing at once. That's why I do so many repetitions and make you do them as well, so the muscles can take over while we make sure no one is going to stab us in the back."

Nagato frowned. "You're going to—"

"Yes."

"And he's going to—"

"Yup!"

"While I—"

"Exactly. You ready?"

Nagato whined but set his feet in the most basic Academy stance. "This is gonna hurt."

"I won't do any damage."

"That won't make it hurt any less."

My response was a vicious slash at his face with one of my sticks. Nagato gave me a pathetic look when I skipped Taijutsu entirely.

* * *

 _Author's note: Christ is Risen! I hope you had a good Easter!_


	56. Chapter 56

Nagato did just fine anyways. While he didn't know as many styles as I did, he was good. There was a damn good reason he was specializing in Taijutsu. I had to take full advantage of my greater height, weight, and ability to take damage with impunity in order to hold him off. In purely hand-to-hand combat, Nagato was undoubtedly better. My sticks leveled the playing field by a lot, and the fact that Nagato had to keep his feet attached to the ceiling at all times and couldn't attach parts of his body to the ceiling at will to increase the number of angles he could attack with, actions that gave me twice the attack range and maneuverability. Nagato earned his fair share of bruises; he fell as often as he succeeded. A surprise leg sweep on my part had him attempt to jump over it, forgetting that gravity was working in the opposite direction and nearly sent him headfirst into the seal. He turned the dive into a clumsy roll, hissing as the seal sent painful shocks through his body until he stepped up on the wall to continue the fight.

Unfortunately for me, after two hours of ceaseless Taijutsu, Nagato started to get the hang of fighting upside down. Panther's occasional Genjutsus became easier for Nagato to brush off when he was actually fighting. He had a bad habit of relying on pain to break himself out but Panther noticed the problem shortly after and hit Nagato with a sensory deprivation Genjutsu. It was good timing, since Nagato had managed to lock his hands around my wrists and was in the process of disarming me.

" _Shit, shit, shit_ ," Nagato hissed in English. It was funny he was copying me, but I was still going to needle him about his language. "Is this a Genjutsu? Yes, obviously. _Shit_! I can't feel my chakra, how am I supposed to—there it is. What if I destroy the root instead of—does gravity affect chakra—no, focus, still fighting, almost won. I need to get rid of the root of the Genjutsu. Maybe I won't fall if I don't disrupt the entirety of my chakra system at once."

I smirked as Nagato readjusted his stance. "You should really watch your language."

He flushed and grumbled something about me cursing all the time.

"I'm older," I retorted.

"You cussed all the time when you were my age, To-chan said so."

"To-chan didn't know me when your age and you're the baby."

"I am not! Natsuki is."

I considered being nice, but quickly dismissed the idea. "I'm not too sure about that."

"She's three!"

"I fail to see your point."

"You're teasing me."

"Just stating the facts. Someone's getting too big for his britches." I winced. The idiom did not translate very well.

"Why do you say weird things, Nii-san?"

"Shut it, bratling. You're the one with drool all over your front."

Nagato looked at his shirt in panic and I took the opportunity to continue the fight. I was twice, maybe three times as good at Taijutsu as I was three years ago, but Nagato had thrown himself into Taijutsu, since he had few other responsibilities and his chakra capacity was several years away from being able to fuel large jutsus. B-rank jutsu exhausted him too much to train with and he mastered jutsu twice as fast as me, though he still needed hand seals for all of them, and no matter what we tried, he just couldn't figure out how to do jutsu without them.

It wasn't just him that couldn't do it. Thinking that it was because Nagato and I had different affinities it didn't work, they asked me to try and teach one of the adults in ANBU with a wind affinity. When the man decided it wasn't worth the effort, they found a kid who wanted to be a ninja and had a wind affinity.

The child was only six, but since I had unprecedented success with Nagato at that age, they were hoping I could replicate it. The evenings of the past three weeks had been spent with the boy, teaching him. It also made sure I remained somewhat in the public eye. He and his younger sister had been abandoned by their parents.

Their aunt and uncle had taken them in but died a month before I picked up the kid as a student. Practically orphaned, but not qualified for the stipend Kushina and I received, he proved himself to be extremely determined and nearly managed to meet the Academy's minimum requirements without any help.

While his sister was still young enough to be eligible for free schooling, but he was not. The kid was exceptionally resourceful and intelligent in practice, though it didn't fully translate to activities other than survival. During the day, he worked to pick up kunai, shuriken, and other abandoned shinobi supplies from the training grounds to trade for rations for him and his sister. I wasn't entirely sure where they lived, but I suspected the two were homeless, even though I wasn't allowed the time to investigate the matter.

I was hoping the boy wouldn't show one day so I could figure it out, but he was always early, struggling, and ultimately failing, to do the independent reading I assigned. I knew he couldn't do the assignment to begin with. Most of it was chakra theory that Nagato was barely able to comprehend. Not to mention the boy couldn't even read it.

I never asked him if he finished it, hoping he would figure out the lesson and come clean, but so far, he just nodded when I asked if he understood it. In all the progress reports I was required to give, I never failed to mention that the boy needed to either be in school or have a full-time teacher if he was going to pass the wartime Genin test anytime in the next five years. It would have been extremely easy to push the kid into class with his sister and house the two of them with a retiree or an injured shinobi. Someone was stopping the kid by making sure he never got to school and met the requirements to graduate to Genin.

Thinking about the kid made me lose focus on my fight with Nagato, which proved disastrous. For me at least. Nagato twisted, his foot flying straight towards the back of my head while I was forced to use both arms to block a wicked punch a kid as small as him shouldn't have been able to throw. Instead of trying to block, I sent a pulse of chakra, like I was dispelling a Genjutsu attached to him, at his foot that was planted on the ceiling. He squawked as he started to fall and couldn't adjust the kick in time.

He hit the ground a second after I quit fueling the seal, hissing at the mild shock that was left over. "I had you! Twice!" Nagato insisted as I flipped and landed in front of him.

"No, you didn't," I lied. "You fell. The first time, you got caught in a Genjutsu." During the past year, I had only barely managed to hang on to my title as 'better than Nagato' in Taijutsu through a mixture of pulling rank, hasty ends to fights, and convenient third-party interruptions. Nagato was better and he knew it, he just couldn't prove it because I never allowed myself to be dragged into a straight Taijutsu match with him. "Either way, you've got the hang of it, for the most part, you didn't even fall when you dispelled the Genjutsu. Just remember, you don't have to disrupt the chakra in your feet to dispel a Genjutsu that doesn't target them."

"Why didn't you say that from the beginning?"

"Because you're trying too hard."

"Nii-san, you are the most vindictive person I know."

"You don't know all that many—" Nagato cut me off with a punch to the stomach.

"I deserved that," I wheezed. Panther left without a word.

"You did. Anyways, you're supposed to be doing doctor stuff today. What changed?"

"I had another fight with the General and the Hokage."

Nagato rolled his eyes. "You're going to get in real trouble if you keep this up."

"You know I don't care about that. I'm going to see if Jackal will let me out of headquarters to surprise Genma."

"The kid you're teaching?"

"Yeah."

"Did he ever come clean about the reading?"

"No."

"You mentioned you wouldn't be able to teach him much with the time constraints."

"Someone's watching out for the kid, trying to make sure he doesn't get sent on missions too early."

"But you wouldn't let that happen."

"If I was his formal sensei, I would have more control, but the mission says I'm only teaching him wind Ninjutsu without hand seals. I can't do that until he has more chakra and it's going to be years before he gets to that point at this rate. I just wish whoever is trying to protect him would reveal themselves so the kid can actually get a roof over his head."

"He doesn't have a house?"

"His parents abandoned him and his sister when they left Konoha. Since he's not an orphan, he doesn't get any help or a discount on the regular Academy and can't pay the full student fees. The village needs me to pass along my wind ability and prove it's not a Kekkei Genkai, so I took the kid on for a few ryo. It's where the pile of spare change on the desk came from."

"You never buy anything."

"I've been saving it to get the kid his own kunai and shuriken, though he has a preference for senbon."

"And he's only six and not a shinobi so he can't get them himself."

"Exactly. I certainly don't need the money."

"Jackal's not going to let you out."

"So?"

"You know what, I want plausible deniability. Do whatever the hell—"

"Language."

"Shut up. Whatever the hell—"

"Language."

"—you plan on doing; I'm going to go work on the seal-less water jutsu you suggested I start with."

I waved and left. Ten minutes later, I had changed into my Chuunin uniform and practically skipped up to the main door of ANBU where Jackal sat behind a desk. He was tossing kunai at a target on the other side of the hall.

"Go away, Uzumaki, you're not allowed out for another six hours."

"You say that like I've sneaked out before."

"Why do you want out?"

"You know the kid I took on?"

"You're still a kid too, but yes."

"That's beside the point. Well, I only get an hour or two a day to teach him, and today I'm mostly free, so I want to actually train him for once."

Jackal glared at me, the mask on the side of his head making the expression unexpectedly fearsome. I couldn't help but shift uncomfortably. "Can you tell me why I'm on shift today?"

"Not for certain, no."

"What can you tell me about my family?"

"Um, small shinobi clan, immediate family is all civilian. You have four older sisters, your father is dead, as are two of your sisters. Your mother is one of the clan elders. I don't know anything specific."

"One of the sisters who is 'dead' actually abandoned Konoha with her husband. My clan refuses to recognize the children they left behind."

My eyes widened. "So, you're the one who has been stopping my requests to place the boy with a full-time mentor."

"ANBU takes the kids no one will miss. I've made sure they have food and shelter, but I can't, in good conscience, put their applications forward for ANBU unless the girl decides to be a shinobi as well."

"Why are you telling me this?"

"Because you have access where I don't. I already have a full team, so even if I manage to pull them in, I can't take them on. The General is taking every excuse to keep you in the village. Both children are wind-natured."

"Again, what does this have to do with me?" I already suspected the answer, but I wanted to hear him say it.

"Because you can take on a future combat team, I can't. It's quite common for ANBU members to raise their own team. I get my niece and nephew in a place I can make sure they're taken care of, the General gets his real excuse to keep you in the village, and the Hokage gets his best shots at you passing on the freaky air control you have without risking creating a third Kichiro."

"Third?"

"That little brother of yours may be an angel when you're around, but he's more of a hellion than you are when you're not there to make him behave."

"I could take offense to those statements."

"But you won't because you're secretly proud of your brother and take pride in your own troublemaking capacity."

I nodded good-naturedly, deciding not to insist that my troublemaking wasn't intentional—it just happened. "So, can I go?"

"On one condition."

"What condition?"

"Pick up Genma's sister, Sachiko, from school early and take her to this address." Jackal held out a scrap of paper. "Then you have until midnight to be back."

"The girl would be an idiot to follow me anywhere."

"She knows you're coming."

"How?"

"I told her."

"How?"

"Shadow clone. You have six minutes to get to school and sneak her out of recess."

"Fine." I snatched the paper out of his hand and marched out of headquarters.

I arrived at the school in less than a minute. It was about a block away from the ANBU headquarters, which I knew wasn't a coincidence.

As soon as I caught sight of the playground, one of the little girls leapt off the swing, flipped in the air and landed, rolling several times before jumping to her feet, unhurt. "I _told_ you I could do it!" She boasted to a knot of older boys. "Now you gotta let me play ninja with you."

"No one wants to play with a cheating baby!" They retorted. I guessed they were eight and the girl was about five.

"I don't cheat!" She shrieked, lunging towards them, fists flying. The boys sneered and took the opportunity to jump on her. I was more than a little annoyed at the fact there was only one adult on the playground to supervise, and even though she was looking directly at the fighting children, she didn't lift a finger as the older boys ganged up on her.

I sighed and leapt the fence, landing behind the boys with a loud thump. "You know, five to one is overkill against almost anyone."

"She started it," one of them protested.

"She's three years younger than you, and you antagonized her hoping for a fight. Because she threw the first punch, I'll keep it at this. If you want to fight, I don't care, but pick on someone your own size. Now scram!"

"What about you?" One of the ringleaders challenged.

I was at least a foot and a half taller than the tallest of them. "Try me," I growled, releasing the tiniest bead of killing intent. They quickly hurried off and I knelt beside the girl. The caretaker watched us, but to my annoyance, she didn't interfere as I crouched beside the girl and laid a hand coated with medical jutsu on her forehead. "You're fine, now go play," I stood up and started to march away.

She jumped up and grabbed my hand. I barely managed to stop myself before I reflexively threw her across the playground.

"Never approach a shinobi from behind, girl, and never, ever touch one without their explicit permission, understand?" I snapped at her. I probably sounded scarier than I did when I told the boys to buzz off.

She nodded and I marched away towards the woman who was supposed to be taking care of the children.

"Three things, lady." I told her flatly. "Uniform or not, you need to need to at least approach any stranger that walks onto the playground. Secondly, since when are eight-year-olds allowed to beat up their much younger classmates? You should have interfered in the fight, no matter who threw the first punch, but you didn't even move. Finally, I'm Kichiro and I've been told to pick up Shiruani Sachiko for the day."

"She's in detention."

"For?"

"Not bringing a lunch."

"You do realize that the girl is being cared for by her six-year-old brother, right?"

"Her family are traitors, it's only a matter of time—"

"Her older brother wasn't even old enough to remember their parents when they left, much less her. Even by shinobi standards, they are under no suspicion."

"The boy is a thief and the girl isn't much better."

"The boy is six and is trying to feed himself and his sister by himself. I also know for certain that he is not a thief. Thank you for your time."

I turned on my heel and marched towards the lone child-sized chakra signature in the Academy building. The girl from before followed me like a lost puppy. I ignored her.

"Chiro-sensei!" Sachiko exclaimed when I unlocked and opened the door to the classroom she was in.

"Um, hi," I responded uncertainly.

"You don't know me, but I'm Sachiko!"

"Uh huh," She plowed right through my response.

"You teach my nii-san shinobi stuff! It's so cool because he teaches them to me a lot too and they're really fun and Nobody said you were going to come pick me up today and I'm so excited and—and—and that was all I really have to say but I'm really excited and are you going to teach me shinobi stuff too and—and—and—"

I held up a hand to stop her. "I have no idea what's going on. I was told to pick you up and take you somewhere, that's all." The 'Nobody' thing threw me for a loop and left me wondering why Jackal would pull an Odysseus on a little girl.

"Can I come?" The girl from before asked. I didn't even look at her.

"Let's go." I tuned on my heel and marched out while the girls stared each other down. Something was decided and they both rushed after me. I ignored them both as they fought for my attention the entire way there. Fortunately for them, and unfortunately for me, the destination was on the opposite side of Konoha. I had to foil at least two murder attempts each, and stop one aimed at myself from the yet-unnamed girl. I managed to do most of it through very pointed killing intent, but I had to actually disarm Sachiko once. Said weapon was a kunai I had given Genma, and I made note to give it back to him and remind him that only ninja and ninja-in-training were allowed to carry blades and/or weapons in public places.

Too late, I realized what I had been set up for. The address I had been given was one of the handful of training grounds that weren't actually in Headquarters. Apparently, Genma had been assigned to clean up the same training ground. I scanned the likeliest of ANBU hiding places and noticed Jackal crouched in the most obvious, watching the three children swarm me with interest. I glared at him. A second scan revealed that there were four others watching, even though I couldn't make out their identities.

The children must have sensed something change and immediately fell silent.

Something wasn't right. Sure, Jackal wanted me to help him with something, but if he was here, he would have approached. Something moved out of the corner of my eye, just over the unnamed girl's head. I spun and dropped her on her back, barely catching the kunai headed straight for her head before it went through my middle, grumbling curses under my breath as several supposed missing-nin started to circle. Someone threw a dozen kunai at Sachiko as soon as Genma turned his back. I jerked her towards me to give myself enough time to pull up an earth wall to stop the kunai. I pushed her down beside the other girl, just as Nagato arrived. I grabbed Genma's collar and yanked him out of the way of a shuriken before he got the hint and crouched beside the two girls. Nagato took up a position on the other side of the children and we settled into a defensive stance, circling the children in the opposite direction of the assailants. It was a tricky defensive maneuver because we switched potential opponents so quickly, but it also decreased the opportunities for the children to be targeted. Jutsu wasn't allowed on this particular training ground, so I knew it would be a matter of minutes before someone arrived to check out what was going on.

I stomped on the ground and channeled chakra through my foot to raise a waist-high wall around the children, pumping enough chakra into it and the ground underneath them to turn it to stone. It took a ridiculous amount of chakra to get through that kind of material, which forced the assailants to attack from above or waste their own energy. I was also sure that the stone would quickly become a permanent fixture on the training ground.

They continued to circle, throwing the occasional kunai, which Nagato or I threw right back at them, but faster.

When two minutes elapsed and they continued to edge closer, I started to worry. There should have been an alarm raised. I couldn't completely encase the children in stone and risk them suffocating, nor could I fight. They had Nagato and I outnumbered five-to-one. I was quite curious as to how Nagato was there, but not curious enough to say anything.

Over the next few seconds, the pieces started to fall together. Jackal was unmoved, and when I looked closer, he was barely breathing. "We surrender," I growled. It wasn't an actual attack; it was a surprise evaluation.

They approached cautiously. Nagato silently allowed himself to be manhandled to the ground, a seal placed on the base of his neck to knock him out. The three children were pulled out of the somewhat safe bowl I made and treated similarly, but with kicking, screaming, and crying on their part. Unlike with Nagato, three people for each child was overkill, even if they did have a tiny bit of ninja training each. Finally, they focused on me.


	57. Chapter 57

They circled me carefully. I suppressed a grin when I realized that they had run out of the knockout tags. If they didn't have the foresight to bring a few extra, I wasn't going to let them complete their operation as easily as I would otherwise.

One of them had a blade ready to sever my spinal cord. I decided to deal with them first. With a vicious twist, I spun and stabbed a senbon through his neck, putting him in a very convenient near-death state. At this point, the team lost their mission sense and focused their attention on me, enraged. Before they managed to rally, I took down two more in a similar manner. That left at least seven assailants, possibly more, three children and Nagato unconscious, and Jackal in unknown condition.

I knew I couldn't win, but they obviously had non-lethal takedown orders. I wasn't going down without a fight. Unless one of them was solid Jōnin-level or above, I knew I could take out at least one more, two if I got lucky. I knew better than to let them attack on their terms and immediately brought the fight to them, not allowing them to regroup. I didn't know how or why, but everyone in ANBU underestimated me at least once, no matter what they were told about me.

I had a vague idea of who the agents attacking me were, but unlike them, I did not make the mistake of underestimating anyone. While they were surprised by my ruthlessness and taking overly long to recover, I managed to take down a fourth one. Unfortunately, one of their older, more experienced members regained their heads and countered. Brutally. I could barely get my arms up in a mockery of a block before burst through it and his fist landed in my ribs. He definitely strengthened himself with chakra, because I felt my ribs snap under the blow. I barely managed to stay functioning and dodge his much more powerful follow-up.

I still crashed into the ground almost ten yards away and rolled another five yards. Or meters, I never managed to completely switch my units of measurement and they weren't nearly as exact as my old world.

I tried to get up, thankful that the broken ribs hadn't punctured my lung, but my arm buckled when I tried to push myself up. Too late I felt the sting of poisoned senbon in my arm. The dose I got would have been instantly lethal to anyone else, but with the Kyuubi's chakra practically saturating my body, it was enough to knock me out almost instantly and leave me sick when I woke up.

(-_-)

I woke up groggy, lying on the metal bed in one of the training interrogation rooms. It didn't require much skill to get out of, but escaping wasn't the point. The man who would apparently be interrogating me was sitting a few feet away. I started to sit up, but immediately noticed the razor-sharp wire around my neck, wrapped around both my wrists and across my hips, and then wrapped around both of my ankles.

"Good evening," the man greeted.

"I haven't even been out an hour, it's lunchtime," I refuted.

"I assure you—"

"You're lying. I am going to assume that every word you say is a lie, good luck convincing me otherwise."

"You're not very open-minded."

"It's hard to be open-minded when I watched your team, or at least the team you're associated with murder three children and my younger brother." I knew it wasn't true, so did he, but I pretended to be pissed enough that it could have been.

"They would never—" He jumped up and dashed out the door. By exercise standards, he failed. Technically, I did as well for surrendering, but I didn't care about my score, I was just pissed ANBU got Genma, his sister, and a random civilian involved. A minute later, one of Kagami's second-in-command, Mongoose, came in a cut me free, his hand tight around my left arm.

"That was a nasty trick to play on everyone."

"Is the exercise over?" I asked, annoyed, and jerked my arm free.

"Yes."

"Good. Now tell me, why the hell were civilian children involved in that exercise?"

"It was an unforeseen change in plans."

"Then why did you go through with it?" I demanded.

"The war is almost over."

"What does that have to do with the sunken islands of Kiri?" I demanded.

"That means you can be brought back out into the public eye again."

"I still don't see why you terrorized two five-year-olds and included Genma in an ANBU practice operation without my permission."

"Nagato—"

"No, Nagato is a genius, he could handle operations at that age because he was raised with the knowledge that he would be a shinobi. Genma may be smart, but he doesn't have that foundation and is not a genius. He most certainly has none of the support Nagato has always had."

"He has you."

"Only for an hour or two a day! Even if he was my full-time student, I can't be his father or mother, that opportunity was taken away from him years ago. Because he's the only family his sister has left, he is wholly responsible for her as well as himself. Maybe the other girl will be fine, but I don't know a single thing about her."

"She's the disowned daughter of a prostitute and unclaimed illegitimate daughter of a civilian clan head," he responded bluntly. "No one will miss the children if they vanish into ANBU."

"What. Do. You. Want."

"Jackal had the right idea. Teams of five are the most common in ANBU."

"You can't stick three civilians into ANBU cold. They'll never survive, they're too young."

"Nagato was fine."

"Nagato is an Uzumaki and genius. Uzumaki civilians are not normal civilians and Nagato was raised knowing he would become a shinobi, yet he still came extremely close to washing out. Regular civilians won't stand a chance."

"They have nothing to lose."

"Jackal wants me to teach Genma and Sachiko. Fine. I'll even take the girl too, but you will ruin those children in a month if they're put in our world too soon."

"What do you propose?"

"My students, my rules."

"Done."

I gaped at him.

He explained, "ANBU needs new blood. You trained Nagato, who is promising to become an extremely strong Jōnin, and you are one of the few agents who have time to train recruits. Raising recruits in ANBU seems to be more effective than anything else, Nagato isn't the first to be successful, though you haven't met many of the others. The only major investment into them that Konoha is making is your time and no matter how poor that investment turns out to be, Konoha doesn't really lose anything."

"Is that all?"

Mongoose thought for a moment. "Yes, that is all."

"May I go see my new students now?"

"You do a very poor job hiding the fact you care for them."

"Do I need to hide it?"

"You shouldn't have too," Mongoose replied ominously. Without another word, he stood up and left, leaving my confiscated weapons behind.

I put the comment out of my mind and tried to think of what the most likely place they would have brought the children was. Nagato was most likely undergoing another interrogation, which I saw no need to interrupt. Every ANBU knew better than to lay a hand on him without my explicit permission. I had no qualms about leaving someone in agonizing pain yet uninjured, though it took them a bit longer than I would have liked for everyone to get the hint. I had gotten much better at sensing and while those inside of the cells could not reach out of them in any way, those outside could sense, see, and hear those inside whenever they wanted to.

I found Genma first and as soon as I got close enough to see that he was awake, I hurried towards his cell and slipped inside. I was careful not to slam the door open, but I made no effort to quiet the sound of it opening. The boy was unsurprisingly curled underneath the metal cot, his back pressed into the corner, and had clumsily wrapped himself in several ratty blankets.

Some idiot had bound his wrists and ankles, then attached him to the cot. He managed to break the tethers to the cot, but not the ninja wire binding him, and only managed to tighten and tangle it to the point where his toes and the tips of his fingers lost circulation.

"What did you say when I asked why you were a shinobi?" Genma barked at me, much more bravely than he looked.

"You never asked," I responded, sitting down a few feet away and sliding a kunai toward him, handle first.

He snatched up the blade and quickly cut himself free before crawling over to me. I let him curl into my lap and soothed the pain in his hands and feet, reestablishing the circulation.

"W-where are we?" he asked, face buried in my shoulder.

"ANBU headquarters."

He stiffened at that.

"Officially, I've been in ANBU for the past four years."

"But you said you were a grunt medic at the hospital!"

"ANBU activities cannot be disclosed to anyone outside of the program."

Genma took a moment to process that. "Does that mean—"

"You are now an ANBU trainee," I told him bluntly.

Unsure of how to process the information, Genma pulled back to see if I was kidding, but I was dead serious. Although it wasn't completely true, everyone knew ANBU got the hardest, cruelest, most disgusting, and most dangerous missions that no one else would take. "A-am I really good enough?"

"No, but you will be before you take any missions."

A thrill of fear flashed across his face. "W-what about m-my sister?" He demanded.

"She is being incorporated into ANBU as well."

"Y-you can't make her—"

"If she wants to be a shinobi, ANBU is her only choice. If she does not want to be a shinobi, her memory of me and ANBU will be wiped, her surname changed, and she will be placed in an orphanage on the other side of the village."

Genma stared at me, horrified.

"That's how ANBU operates, but it is both to protect her from our enemies and stop a potential leak in information."

I was mildly frustrated that he just accepted it but refrained from commenting. I must have sat there for at least an hour after that, Genma refusing to budge from my lap and playing with one of my senbon. I didn't mind. I had already located the two younger girls, and both were unconscious. When one of them started to stir, I stood up, letting Genma tumble to the ground.

"Come on, the other little limpet I somehow picked up needs to be told the news."

"Sachiko?"

"No, the other girl."

"Her name is Sachiko too."

I sighed. "That's going to get confusing."

"They hate each other."

I didn't blame them. "Wait out here," I told Genma when I reached the proper cell. As soon as the door closed behind me, I felt a slight tug on my medic pouch. Years of drills had me reacting before my mind could think. I grabbed the wrist trying to pull out one of the sedatives I carried, tightening my grip until the bones shifted. The little girl scratched at my face, but the attack hit the stone floor with a sick crack before it got anywhere near me. The maneuver I used was meant for a grown man and I had put more strength into it than necessary. She hit the ground, landing awkwardly on her wrist and bouncing away from me until she fetched up against the wall. I heard bones snap as she hit the ground hard.

She screamed in pain but managed to keep her head well enough to try and escape as I hurried towards her. The wrist I had grabbed was already swelling and the hand she landed on had bone sticking out of the inside of her forearm. The girl had no way of knowing how to strengthen her body with chakra and none of the damage had been mitigated. Thankfully, her head sustained no damage. The bruises on her face and torso marked the damage she had already taken on the playground, but more bruises were already forming.

There was no way for me to placate the girl when she was in so much pain, but, to my surprise, I didn't regret it. Any civilian should have known better than to threaten a shinobi. I didn't hold out much hope that she would learn her lesson, but I did hope that she would be more cautious in the future. I ignored her weak kicks as I knelt beside her and started to heal the compound fracture first, making no effort to be gentle. Though it took longer than I would like, she eventually stopped fighting.

When she started to defiantly scrub her tears away with her freshly healed wrist, I deemed her calm enough to accept a scolding.

"You are the stupidest, bull-headed, reckless person I've ever met."

Out of the corner of my eye, I saw her lift her chin in defiance.

"If this keeps up, you're going to die before you reach your sixth birthday."

"Who cares?" She challenged.

I shrugged. "Do you want to be a ninja?"

"Yes!" She said with absolute certainty.

"You can't serve the village if you're dead."

"I can if it is by dying!" She snapped back.

My stomach churned. She wasn't even six! She shouldn't even understand what death was, much less wish for it. I sincerely hoped most of her words were a mask instead of the truth.

"You're just like everyone else. You don't even care."

"Why should I care about someone who just wants to die? Why should I care about someone who's just going to get their way eventually?" She didn't have an answer to that, so I pulled out the last of the two kunai I carried around, the other was with Genma. "If you really want to die, you can attack one of the ANBU who will come to get you later with this. If you want to live and learn to be a real ninja instead of a suicidal waste of space, you can follow me. I don't give a damn which one you choose, but if you choose to follow me, I will not tolerate using a rock instead of your brain."

I waited for the words to sink in before standing up and marching out.

A few seconds later, she followed.

To my surprise, Genma didn't comment when she followed me out. He just stared at his feet and shuffled after me. His sister was still unconscious several cells away. I went in and woke her up, waiting outside with Sachiko while Genma explained the situation to her. I felt bad for Genma when his sister dropped his hand the second she caught sight of the other girl. The three of them still followed me obediently. Genma's sister was definitely the sneakiest child I ever laid eyes on. She managed to pickpocket the kunai I gave Genma and while I was disabling the seal meant to keep them in the cell block, stabbed the other girl pretty good, who stabbed her back at the exact same time.

I wasn't going to dismiss their feud, but it was borderline ridiculous.

They didn't cause much damage to each other, neither had the fortitude to seriously hurt another person, but they would be in pain. I confiscated their kunai and grabbed them both by the arm and dragged them through the halls. I needed to address their hatred of each other and find a workable solution as soon as I made sure Nagato was alright. It didn't take long for me to find him.

Genma and the two girls probably thought I was insane when I stopped and stared at a seemingly random door then went back the way I came. I next took them to one of the rooms that was generally used for individual or duo training and sat them in a circle and started to lecture them.

"The three of you are in ANBU now. That means your behavior reflects on this organization. Generally, new recruits are systematically torn down physically, mentally, and emotionally, then rebuilt as a perfect soldier. They survive and thrive, or they die. Luckily for you, I don't agree with that system, but I'm not sure you'll like mine much better. Unless stated otherwise, every second of your time here from here on out is training of some sort whether you realize it or not. Any questions so far?"

The three of them shook their heads quickly. I was sending a very measured amount of killing intent their way to keep them, mainly the girls, focused on me.

"Sachiko and Sachiko, your names, obviously, are the same, and it's not fair to you," I pointed at Genma's sister, "to always be called 'Genma's sister' so the two of you are going to pick new names to go by while you're here." I gave them thirty seconds to think of something. It only took ten seconds for them to realize I was serious and start arguing with each other. "Enough," I snapped. "You will be Red," I pointed at Genma's sister, her hair had a reddish tint to it that Genma's lacked. "You will be Blondie," I told the other girl.

They protested their names, so I increased the killing intent until they almost collapsed but quickly let up.

"None of you know the first thing to being a shinobi. It's my job to get you to the point where you can get your mission done and live to report on it." I looked at the two girls. "Like it or not, the two of you will be stuck together for the next five years at the very least. There is no getting around that fact. I don't care if you compete with each other, but the two of you are responsible for each other's backs and the backs of your future teammates. You cannot hate each other. You have to be closer than siblings, because when you're out in the field, you can't rely on anyone else, and if you can't rely on each other, no one can rely on you."

I waited for that to sink in. The girls looked at each other, gazes still loaded with hatred.

"You have the rest of today to work out your differences and come to an agreement on your own. If you cannot do so, I will intervene and make you, one way or another. This is your only warning. I glanced at the clock on the wall. At sunset, I will come back and see what progress you've made. Genma, come with me."

I stood up and waited for the boy to follow, but he hesitated.

"Genma!" I barked at him. He followed immediately and I locked the two girls in the room.

"Sensei?" He asked cautiously.

"Ask away."

"What are you going to do if they don't get along?"

"Embarrass them."

"How?"

"Ever heard the phrase attached at the hip?"

Genma frowned and shook his head.

"It's an expression that means two people are so close to each other you never see one without the other. Well, if they don't shape up, they will be literally attached at the hip until they do."

While that sunk in, I led him to Nagato and my 'dorm' room. Roach had moved into the regular dorms the second he turned fifteen, though it was mostly out of necessity. Roach was taking missions above Nagato's clearance level and it was one thing to have Nagato privy to my movements and aware of the information I was dealing with, but quite another for him to be aware of another agent's. No one had moved Roach's bed out, so I decided Genma could take that bed. Nagato slept on a mattress underneath my bed.

"You can have the top bunk, that's where Roach used to sleep, but he had to move rooms. The locker there is for your armor and weapons. That desk is yours, trust me, you'll need it. If you make a mess, you clean it up. As for hazing, you shouldn't have a problem since I don't tolerate it, but if it happens and you can't handle it, tell me and if you need help, either me or Nagato will help. Any questions?" I slipped out of my Chuunin vest and set it on the back of my chair.

"What about my sister and the other girl?"

"I'll need to figure that out later. Anyways, this is one of the few places I know we won't be overheard and I need to make several things clear to you before you agree to a formal apprenticeship."

I gestured for Genma to sit at his desk. Mine faced his, while Nagato's was in the corner of the room so he could work with fewer distractions. I sat down behind my desk, on which someone had dropped three copies of apprenticeship papers. Genma nodded for me to continue. He didn't meet my eye, but I didn't expect him to.

"Do you know my full name?"

Genma shook his head. I was surprised he hadn't been told.

"At any point, you are free to walk out of this room and I will make sure you face no consequences for your decision. I will not manipulate or coerce you in any way to make your apprenticeship official and I will make sure you are placed with a decent sensei. Do you understand?"

"What does 'coerce' mean?"

"It means I will not force you in any way, be it emotional, physical, or mental."

He nodded.

"You speak for your sister on this, do you understand what I'm telling you?"

"I understand."

"My full name is Uzumaki Kichiro."

Genma looked up at me in shock. "Everyone thinks you died!"

I shook my head. "My memory is rather warped, but in the time I was gone from the village, I was actually a prisoner in Iwa, but that is information you are not to share with anyone without explicit permission from me, the ANBU General, or the Hokage." I waited for that to sink in before continuing. "Do you know what a Jinchuuriki is?"

Genma's face paled as he nodded.

"Explain to me what you know about Jinchuuriki."

"They're monsters," Genma shuddered. "The lady who took care of Sachiko and I after _they_ left used to tell us that if we didn't behave, the Jinchuuriki would come and burn us alive."

I had a good guess who they were; I didn't ask for an explanation. "A Jinchuuriki is someone, usually a ninja, who has a tailed beast sealed inside of them. Some have bad seals and go mad from the demon raging inside their heads, but most have seals that keep them from being influenced by the beast they harbor." Genma watched me, fascinated by the almost clinical definition. "There are a few who can use the nearly limitless chakra of the tailed beast alongside their own. Only Kage stand a chance against a Jinchuuriki of that level, or a Jinchuuriki who has lost control of the tailed beast inside of them."

"Are they evil?"

"They are humans who have power few can combat. Some are angry, some are cruel, some are sad, most have had harder lives than you."

He leaned back in his chair and stared at his hands. I didn't let my gaze waver from his face.

"I am the Jinchuuriki of the Kyuubi."

Fear filled Genma's face. He stood up and backed away a few steps. I didn't move. He glanced between me and the door several times. "I-I don't believe you. You're nothing like how they describe Jinchuuriki."

I didn't answer.

"You're a person, right?"

"Yes."

"You don't hunt people down for sport."

"I would never."

"You're not the Kyuubi."

"I am not."

"How can I be sure?"

"I can show you what the Kyuubi's chakra feels like."

"But what if it escapes?"

"Contrary to what most have been led to believe, I have never lost control of the Kyuubi's chakra, despite my age. The instances that people would attest to were all while I or another person were manipulating a Genjutsu to convince an opponent of the fact. I have never killed anyone with the Kyuubi's chakra."

"But you've killed people."

"I have."

"How?"

"By accident, mostly. I have only intentionally killed one person."

"Why did you kill them?"

"The woman was threatening my sister and had the Hokage and several other Jōnin trapped in a Genjutsu, manipulating them into attempting to kill me."

Genma approached me cautiously. I didn't move a muscle as he laid a hand over my heart. "I'm not going to run," he decided.


	58. Chapter 58

It didn't take long for me to start walking Genma through the official documents that would solidify his apprenticeship. When I dropped it in front of him, he finally admitted that he couldn't read. I lectured him about it for a minute before reading each of the questions to him and guiding his hand to write down the answers, for both his form and his sister's. It was an exercise in frustration for both of us. He didn't understand the questions as well as he wanted to and I had to explain most of them. Three hours later, Genma proudly signed his name beside mine. At some point during the ordeal, he took a seat on my lap. When he finished, he didn't move from his perch; instead, he leaned back against me.

"I'm tired," he murmured, rubbing his eyes.

"Your bed is right up—" he was already out. I rolled my eyes and firmly reminded myself that he was only six years old.

I picked him up, decided against trying to haul him up to the top bunk and laid him on my bed.

I started filling out Blondie's form. She wasn't old enough to speak for herself, so I would need the signature of her guardian. I was nearly done with the form when Nagato stumbled into the room and dropped his weapons pouch just outside the door. I barely caught the boy before he face-planted. I dragged him over to the nearest chair and laid my hand on his chest, using medical chakra to flush the worst of the hallucinogens and other drugs from his system.

His head dropped onto my shoulder and drool gradually dampened my shirt. It didn't take long for me to bundle him into bed as well, with a little bit of medical chakra to make sure he stayed asleep long enough for the rest of the drugs to wear off. He'd have hell when he woke up since most of the standard interrogation drugs were highly addictive, but I wasn't particularly worried.

Once Nagato was settled, I finished the last of the paperwork and grabbed my vest on the way out to get the housing assignment for the two girls and hopefully gain a signature for Blondie's paperwork. It was just my luck to run into the agent carrying orders for me to immediately report to Kagami. I didn't bother asking what the rush was, I wouldn't get an answer. I headed straight for Kagami's office. I didn't bother knocking; I just barged in and tossed the papers on Kagami's desk.

"How?" he asked out of the blue.

"I beg your pardon?"

"How do you piss off a clan head to the point where he would claim a bastard child?"

"I have no idea who you're talking about."

"Oshiro Riku."

"I don't know—oh."

"How did you piss him off?"

"He was an ass and I told him to piss off, though, in my opinion, it was in a lot nicer words than I could have used."

"What reason could you possibly have to meet with him to tell him so?"

"Hey! He's the one that came to me just after I got back from Iwa, he started banging on the door all rude-like and demanding to speak with someone in charge. He wanted to buy and trade children like livestock, so I said no."

"Congratulations, you're the only living person to ever turn him down."

"I don't understand what this is about."

"That girl you locked in the training room with her arch-nemesis is his daughter, and somehow, he caught wind of you taking her on as a student and is pressing charges against you."

"What charges?"

"Theft of property."

"I never took anything of his."

"Bastard children are considered property by civilian law."

"That's sick. How can the Hokage—"

"The Hokage doesn't have a say, The Daimyō made the law for the entirety of the Land of Fire years ago. The Hokage answers to the Daimyō. I sent a team to research the girl as soon as I heard about the charges, but she hasn't committed any crimes on which she can be wrested away from a clan head who has the Daimyō's ear."

"She attempted to steal from and attack me earlier and she grabbed me when I was at the school, child or not, that's technically enough to get her executed according to the letter of the law, considering I'm ANBU and major village asset. I can press the charges against her and the judge can give her a sentence of ninja service instead of execution. He can't—"

"The Daimyō has already been brought into the case, so we can't work around it. Oshiro-san would prefer the girl dead."

"Then give her a hitai-ate. No one but the Hokage and her commander can claim her them."

"The Daimyō forbid anyone under the age of six to be Genin."

"What about the girl's mother?"

"She was murdered by a pickpocket less than an hour ago. There was no way to link the pickpocket to Oshiro-san or the Daimyō. He offered to drop the charges for one of the children of your clan."

"The Uzumaki clan is too small to be eligible for an exchange like that. Besides, I'm a shinobi, civilian law doesn't apply to me."

"Civilian law doesn't apply to you for as long as you aren't caught or accused. You can't be investigated for actions while you are on duty. Unfortunately, Jackal didn't go through the proper channels. You've been accused, and there is enough circumstantial evidence to make sure the charges can't be dismissed."

"The girl followed me. I didn't even do anything."

"We know that, the Hokage knows that, but we can't tell civilians that the girl was incorporated into ANBU, and no one witnessed your fight."

"Then give the girl back. She's too young for this life anyway."

Kagami studied me. "What do you know about Oshiro Riku?"

"He's an ass."

"Anything else?"

"He doesn't like it when he doesn't get his way?"

"After you turned the man down, he beat the two children he had brought with him and had them tossed in the river. The children would have drowned if it wasn't for a passing Genin who brought them to the hospital. They've been living on the streets ever since."

I could feel the blood leave my face in horror.

"If the girl can learn to keep ahold of her temper, she might be a decent agent, which is why I told the Hokage I would not be handing her over."

"Can't the Hokage—"

"He tried to represent you, but then the Oshiro head started to make demands of your clan."

"They wouldn't give anything without my say-so and I'm technically unreachable."

"It hasn't stopped him from attempting to buy out their Fūinjutsu business and the miniature lost and found business two of the younger clan members set up with help from their canine companions."

"The Fūinjutsu can't be sold to or by civilians without the Hokage's approval—they can't buy the business without a seal master. The children aren't of age; thus their business doesn't fall under village law. He can't touch the clan."

"True, but he can pressure civilians not to sell to them."

"They can just buy from shinobi clans. I made sure the clan wasn't reliant on any civilian-made products years ago."

"What about the children's school?"

"They go to a school for clan children, in which over fifty percent of the student population is from a shinobi clan. He can't close down the school without pissing off the clans as well."

"You are behind the times, Kichiro. The only clan children in the school now are from clans too small to make a difference, even when working together. The Akimichi pulled their civilian children from the school two years ago. No other clan, aside from the Uchiha and Hyuuga, have the economic clout necessary to give the Oshiro pause. All three are too busy finishing this war to care."

"Then the children can be taught at home."

"You can't lock the children away."

"Then let me talk to Oshiro and the Daimyō."

"They could—"

"Unless they hire missing-nin, which is strictly forbidden, they can't force me to do anything. They have no choice but to listen."

"Both parties have samurai at their command. Enough to overwhelm you."

"The Kyuubi can deter that threat, if the need arises."

Kagami considered it. "What would you tell them if I allowed this?"

"I'd remind them exactly why no one dares to threaten my family."

"I see. What about the girl?"

"I'll figure something out."

"You could make a permanent enemy."

"The Uzumaki clan is an ally of Konoha. Our enemies are Konoha's enemies. If Konoha's civilian population persecutes the Uzumaki in any way, they break the terms of the contract that ensure amicability between the clan and the village and we will no longer be bound to the village. The other villages would leap at the chance to gain access to Uzumaki Fūinjutsu. That would make it the Hokage's problem and he can handle the rest."

Kagami rubbed his temples. "The Daimyō isn't as weak as he was when you last met him."

"I won't be bullied into whatever they want from me."

"You still represent your clan."

"Well, it's good that my clan is well-known for their explosive tempers. I'm actually much calmer about this than any other Uzumaki would be."

Kagami flinched. "That's why I don't want to allow this."

"I'm not going to kill anyone, just scare them a bit."

"Your strong-arm tactics don't work, Kichiro."

"Then what are you going to do about it?"

"I was hoping you would have a viable alternative to the Hokage's solution."

"Alternative to what?"

"Discrediting the Oshiro clan."

"And this isn't the first option, why?"

"Konoha needs the economic power of their clan. Tactically, the best option would be to roll with their demands."

"You and the Hokage know that's an injustice. For once, I've done exactly what I was told, this mess is not my responsibility."

"You are uncharacteristically calm about this."

"Do I need to be getting worked up about this?"

"There is one last option I have in mind, but I will need your word that you will act responsibly and according to the letter of the law."

"What is the option?"

"I give you indefinite leave to go home. In that time, you will remain on your clan compound. As long as you promise to abide by the letter of the law, both civilian and shinobi, you will remain there until this case is settled. Your presence ought to bait Oshiro. Eventually, he will make a mistake. Nagato can teach the children the foundations until you can return."

"Why isn't Jackal responsible? He got me into this mess."

"Outside of ANBU, only Jackal's immediate family and the people who knew him as a child are aware of his existence. It would be like passing the charges onto a ghost and the Daimyō won't stand for it."

"Fine, I'll take the leave, but Nagato comes with me."

"I can give him the evenings, but no more, we are short-staffed and losing you, even if it is only for a week or two is a risk."

"It's not like I'm leaving the village."

"You aren't leaving the immediate area of your compound either."

I shrugged. "I'm still available as emergency personnel, I don't need to guard the compound, just occupy it, right?"

He didn't answer right away.

"I'm just there as bait, the clan isn't in any immediate danger from a civilian, right?"

"If this escalates, they could be."

"Damn it! What the hell am I stuck in the middle of and how?"

"Ultimately, it's a power play between the Hokage and the Daimyō."

"I'm not the Hokage's—"

"Enough, Kichiro. I need your word that you will stick to both civilian and shinobi law."

"Fine," I snapped.

"I'll hold you to it. We'll stick to this plan. You'll stay and wait for Oshiro to take the bait. I'll send Sakumo if the plan changes or I need to give further orders. I recommend schooling your fellow orphans at home for the time being, they are most certainly not safe at school and shinobi are not allowed on the premises."

"You just told me they can't be locked away."

"They won't be, you can take them around the village, but the situations at the school might escalate and children are not equipped to deal with them."

"Fine. If that's the case, I want Nagato with me."

Kagami gritted his teeth. "Fine, but he will be on-call during the day."

"What about Genma?"

"In his file, you mentioned he couldn't read, correct? I'll occupy him and the girls with schoolwork until you return."

I tried to hurry out, but Kagami called for me to wait.

"I know this isn't entirely fair to you, but if you screw up, the Hokage and I have no grounds to defend you."

"What time do I need to be home by?"

"Midnight. It's almost dinnertime now."

I tuned on my heel and shut the door politely behind me. My first stop was to the room I locked the girls in. It wasn't difficult for me to enter without them noticing. They weren't fighting or arguing, instead, they were sitting on opposite sides of the room, pointedly not looking at each other. I leaned back against the door casually and revealed myself.

"I suppose this is better than fighting, but not by much. It's a start. Come here, both of you." I met them in the middle of the room and the three of us sat in a triangle. Neither said a word. "I'm not idealistic enough to believe that the two of you actually talked through your disagreement. That's what we're going to do now."

"Where's my brother?" Red demanded.

"Sleeping. He's too young for the responsibility he has. I have a mission, of sorts, so I'm not going to be able to supervise the two of you for the next week or two, it could be longer. So, we're going to talk about this now, and the two of you will be expected to remain civil with each other until I return. Blondie, since you're on my left, you can go first. Why do you hate Red?"

"She's mean."

Red protested, but I held up a hand. "How is she mean?"

"She tries to boss me and the other kids around."

"Okay, Red, why do you hate Blondie?"

"She never does what she's supposed to. In class she's always messing around and causing problems and being distracting."

"Blondie, why do you think Red tries to boss other people around?"

"Because she's mean and a know-it-all."

"What other reasons can you think of?" I gave her a minute to think before turning to Red. "Why do you think Blondie likes to mess around?"

"Because she's stupid and likes to cause trouble and get—" Red broke off. Something clicked for her.

"Get what?" I prompted, surprised at how easy it was.

"Attention, she doesn't have Nobody to make sure she's okay at night." Red frowned, studying the other girl with a frown.

"Good. Blondie, anymore thoughts as to why Red tries to boss people around?"

She nodded but didn't say anything, staring at the ground in front of her crossed legs. The girls cooperated as I made them both talk about what the other did, said, or even looked like that ticked the other girl off. It only took about a half hour before the girls started to realize how stupid the majority of their points were and started to understand the other's reasoning for their actions. I made them finish out the hour with stupid getting-to-know-you games. By that point, they weren't particularly fond of each other, but they weren't going for the other's throats.

I handed them each a ration bar to eat, and when they finished, I guided them to the room the Twins 2.0 used to share. They had long since moved into the area of headquarters where infiltrators lived. Fortunately, it had already been set up for the girls, everything in the room sharply divided.

"Both of you go to sleep. In the morning, I won't be here, I might not be back for several weeks. In the meantime, you will be given schoolwork and lessons from another agent, or possibly several agents. Do your best on the work and learn as much as you can. When I get back, they'll be a test. If you both do well on it and keep the fighting in the meantime to an absolute minimum, trust me, I'll know if you've been fighting at all, I'll start teaching you shinobi things. If you continue to fight and/or don't do well, you will be continuing the lessons with me for another few months. What applies to one of you applies to the other, understand? You will have some lessons with Genma, if not all of them. If he has to break up any of your fights, you both automatically fail. Am I understood?"

"Yes, Kichiro-sensei," they responded, subdued.

"Have a good night."

"Good night," they responded. I smiled at them both before closing the door behind me.

A few minutes later, I managed to wake Genma up and give him the same news, reminding him to do his best. I told him about my deal with the girls. I didn't care as much about his academics and I told him as much. If I was only teaching him, I could teach him the same way I taught Nagato, giving the lessons as they became relevant to what he was learning. It worked great with Nagato, and I hoped it would work just as well with Genma. At long last, I was able to pick up Nagato, who was still asleep, and shunshin to the Uzumaki house.

Carrying Nagato unconscious on my back wasn't the kindest way to show up, so after making sure no one was on the top floor, I slipped in the window and laid Nagato on the mattress in the somewhat center of the room, which had several blankets piled on it. I tossed a few of them over him and stripped off my weapons and armor before slipping downstairs. All the children, aside from the oldest, whose name I was surprised to remember was Gin, were asleep, or almost asleep in their respective rooms, curled up on top of, against, or in one case, trying to wriggle underneath their canine companions. Gin was in the corner of the library and the nervous state of his chakra indicated that he wasn't quite within his rights, but I didn't rat him out. Fusō was tucking little Natsuki into bed, woman I remembered as a doctor wasn't in the house, and two of the seal masters were on the second floor working on a seal. The third seal master, Takeshi, and Ise were sitting at the end of the dining room table, leaning over several pieces of paper and scrolls.

I leaned against the doorframe and waited for them to notice me. Fusō came out of Natsuki's room and saw me immediately, but didn't say anything, she just made sure to approach in my peripheral.

"Is Nagato okay?" She asked warily as she pulled me into a hug. What the other three were working on must have been extremely important, because after looking up, surprised, they quickly returned to the discussion.

"Yeah, he's upstairs and asleep, had a rough day."

"How long are you back?" She asked as if it hadn't been three years since she last got more than a note assuring the family we were alive.

"A week at the least, it could be a month or two." Her grip tightened and I felt a few drops land on the top of my head. "What's going on here?" I asked cautiously.

"Several civilian clans are ignoring the fact that the Uzumaki have sat on that council for longer than any of their clans. It's nothing for you to worry about."

"It is, actually, since a civilian clan is one of the primary reasons I'm here right now."

"No, Kichiro, this really does have nothing to do with you."

"Okay," I yielded.

"Tomorrow's the weekend, all of this can wait."

Ise started to pick up the papers and everyone but him and Fusō hurried out.

"You've gotten so big!" Fusō exclaimed, tightening her grip and patting my head. I was starting to feel a bit lightheaded from the restricted circulation. I stood on tiptoe so I could lay my head on her shoulder and hug her back.

* * *

 _Author's note: There have been a lot of time skips lately, so instead of making you do the math, here are the approximate ages of the major characters._

 _Kichiro: 14_

 _Minato and Kushina: 13_

 _Nagato: 9_

 _Sakumo: 34_

 _Fusō and Ise: 32_

 _Kakashi and Natsuki: 3_

 _Sandaime: 45_

 _Kagami: 47_

 _I think that's everyone important and I hope it clears things up._


	59. Chapter 59

Eventually, she and Ise pulled me into a seat and quizzed me on everything that could possibly be relevant to the three years Nagato and I spent in ANBU. Half of my answers were some variation of 'classified' and half of the rest were horribly vague. They didn't push for the answers I couldn't give, like what kind of missions we went on, what our friends were like. We stayed there most of the night talking. I recounted a few stories about Nagato, had a short, unresolved debate with Ise over the spreading of contagion among shinobi living in close quarters for extended periods of time, which was interrupted by Fusō fussing over my health. I was definitely on the scrawny side of boys my age and by now I knew I was going to stay there.

Finally, I couldn't hold in my curiosity any longer and asked the question I wanted. "Where are Kushina and Minato?"

"Mission," Ise responded. "They were supposed to be back three weeks and three days ago, but the details are above our head. The Chuunin assured us everything was fine but admitted that they were supposed to return three weeks ago. He still insisted that everything was fine."

I struggled to keep the worry out of my expression. If they were still Chuunin, that meant something extremely bad went down on their mission. Chuunin didn't get mission extensions or secondary missions, especially not Chuunin who were currently only thirteen. "Are they Jōnin already?"

"Not yet. Is everything alright?"

"Yeah, it's fine, what kind of mission was it?"

"They didn't say."

Every red flag I could think of was flying at this point. I made a mental note to send Nagato to investigate if they weren't back before he felt better. In the meantime, I leaned back against Ise. I wasn't fooling anyone, they knew I was worried, and from what I could tell, they were as well. In four days, unless we were notified otherwise, they would be presumed MIA or AWOL, depending on the situation, and if they didn't show up within the next two years, they would be considered KIA. I pushed those thoughts out of my mind and decided to forget about it. There was nothing I could do about it anyways.

"You should have been in bed hours ago," Ise interrupted. He seemed to move slower than I remembered and I had plenty of time to prepare myself as he stood up and tossed me over his shoulder.

"I'm fine," I protested, squirming, even though I had allowed him to pick me up. "If anyone needs sleep, it's Gin, he's been studying something in the library this whole time. Still studying, too."

Ise chuckled while Fusō looked as if she was going to start hissing. "It's the weekend, let the kid stay up late, he'll learn his lesson eventually."

Fusō relaxed, but still left to scold the boy and chase him to his room.

"It is almost three in the morning Kichiro, off to bed with you as well. Shinobi or not you need—"

"Actually, if I want to, I can go quite a while without sleep without any adverse effects. I might be insane by the end of it, but I still can."

If anything, that had Ise hustling me upstairs even more persistently. I didn't resist, lying down beside Nagato as Ise fixed my sloppy job of tucking the boy in and pulled the blankets over me as well. Instead of leaving like I thought he would, Ise stayed seated on Nagato's other side, running his fingers through the boy's hair, which I had been meaning to cut for a while. My hair was on the long side as well, almost long enough to be tied into a ponytail if I felt like it. Nagato wasn't yet good enough to be able to work with hair in his eyes, but there wasn't any critical need, so I never got around to cutting it. I wasn't sure at exactly what point I fell asleep, but it was nearly noon before I woke again.

It wasn't the most pleasant of awakenings either. Somehow, I didn't even stir when Ise left, or when Nagato got up, but the faint, distant scent of blood woke me instantly. I scanned the room carefully. It was empty, but there was a slight commotion in the bathroom. Carefully, I crept towards it, using all of my skill in stealth to make doubly sure I went unnoticed.

"This is your fault," a familiar girl's voice responded to a low hiss. I knew it was Kushina before I even reached the door, even though she sounded much older than I remembered.

"It wasn't like we could clean it anyway!" A voice, I was fairly certain it was Minato, responded. "Ow! Why can't we just ask Ise or Kaede to— _ow_ —clean it?"

"You're such a sissy."

"Just wait until I start poking at that—ow—arm of yours. See how much you—OW—you did that on purpose!" I slipped inside the door without either of them responding. Minato sat on the floor, his ruined shirt and Chuunin vest beside him as Kushina knelt behind him and tried to clean a long, if not incredibly deep slash that went from just under his left shoulder blade and down to the right side of his waist and around to his navel. It looked to be less than a half-inch deep, nothing serious by itself, if it wasn't for the fact that the wound had gone completely untreated until now.

"Blame Fugaku, he made the call to stay back and make sure the main team wasn't followed."

"You're the one who guilted him into it," Minato retorted. "There's a reason we're supposed to always have a Jōnin commanding officer present on missions."

"I can't believe he got off without a scratch."

"I think that had something to do with—ow—the fact you threw him over a kilometer away when— _ow_ —the fighting started."

"Did I ever apologize for that?"

"Ow! That's it, I'm getting someone else to clean it—" Minato tried to get up, but Kushina grabbed his shoulder and shoved him back down

"Sit down, Namikaze, and tough it out. I'm not that bad at this."

"Considering Nagato can do a better job on the battlefield than you are doing right now, I shudder at what your idea of 'bad' really is," I inserted.

Kushina stiffened but didn't turn towards me. "Minato, did you hear that voice too?"

"No, it was the door squeaking open," Minato responded sarcastically. I underestimated him, he must have noticed me from the beginning, he didn't even flinch when I spoke. Kushina slowly turned towards me as I revealed myself. She was cautious enough to do a double identity check and ask a signed security question, which I answered, though I had to think twice to avoid using ANBU signs, before flying towards me with a squeal. She smelled very strongly of sweat and blood, but I didn't particularly care as I let my head fall onto her shoulder.

"I missed you," I murmured into her hair, which felt like it was trying to smother me. She tightened her grip in response.

I opened one of my arms for Minato to join and after a minute, he did, Kushina's hair tangling around him as well.

"Nii-san? Why'd you have to go?" Kushina asked softly.

"I'm sorry," I responded softly. "I'm so sorry." Eventually, I pulled back. "Let's get Minato fixed up properly."

Minato sat back down and I knelt behind him, Kushina clinging to my shirt. I was good enough of a medic that I didn't need supplies to clean a wound, but it was too time-consuming and tedious for me to try, especially if it wasn't absolutely necessary. I picked up the pad Kushina was using.

"It's nowhere near as painful if you loosen the scab before tearing it off to clean out whatever got stuck inside the wound, Kushina."

"Oh, I knew I was forgetting something."

"You think?" Minato grumbled. I laid my hand over the beginning of the cut, drawing on a little chakra to pull some of the water from the air into the scab. Condensation ran down Minato's back, causing him to shiver. It was a minor elemental control exercise I picked up to get Nagato started on water manipulation. It was very useful in pranks as well as cleaning and healing scabbed wounds. I wasn't great at water manipulation, but I was good enough to use it if I wanted to, albeit slowly.

I worked off the scab and cleaned the wound with the dampened cloth, healing as I went. Minato winced a few times, but was otherwise still.

Kushina was talking to Minato with an altered sign language I didn't understand and I didn't bother to try and figure out their conversation. "What's your clearance level?" Minato asked out of the blue.

"Higher than you," I responded. "ANBU, remember?"

"You know what the seals around the village were designed to do, correct?" Kushina asked.

"Academy students know what the seals are designed to do." I wasn't paying them very much attention, instead, I was more focused on a piece of metal imbedded in Minato's back that had been revealed by the gash, surrounded by scar tissue.

I carefully extracted it, causing Minato to hiss with pain as the scar tissue came with the barb. I quickly healed it, though I didn't waste the energy in removing the scar. At least the contraption wasn't anywhere near his spine, that would have been a challenge. A precursory examination told me exactly what the thing was. In its entirety, it was about the size of my pinky finger, with several hooked barbs protruding from it. I held it out for Minato to see. "You should not be letting anyone but a medic jab you with sharp metal objects, Minato. Secondly, sharp metal objects do not go under your skin unless you are undercover or on a mission with a high risk of capture."

Minato winced at seeing the barb in my blood-smeared hand. Kushina cringed as I turned my attention to her.

"You should be watching his back better," I scolded.

"It wasn't exactly her fault," Minato defended. "She was a bit more concerned with the giant thing that was trying to eat us than the stuff it was spitting."

"I don't care, but do not ever leave metal in your body like that again, especially if it's not in a critical position."

I coated my hand with chakra and broke the thing open. Inside was a rolled-up active explosive note that I had to quickly deactivate before it exploded in our faces. Both of them yelped in alarm.

"Anyone with a basic knowledge of first aid, even civilians, could have taken that out without breaking it. Have we learned our lesson now?"

Both of them nodded, looking a little green.

"You're the fifth person I've had to take one of these things out of. No one else could explain what they were facing at the time and I suppose the same is true of you two as well?"

They nodded.

"That's unfortunate. Turn this in for me, please and thank you." I destroyed the explosive note and handed Minato the shell before going back to work. "Why were you asking me about the defensive seals?"

They weren't in a hurry to answer that and continued their silent discussion. Twenty minutes later, I finished and stood up to wash my hands and rinse out the soiled cloth. Kushina never let go of my shirt, shadowing my steps as if I was going to disappear any second. I was feeling slightly vindictive, so I considered disappearing just to startle her, but decided against it, and worked on fixing a nasty gash in her arm that stretched from her shoulder to the back of her hand.

"What's going on?" I finally demanded when I finished.

They exchanged a look but didn't answer.

"Then I'm just going to change the subject." I picked up Kushina and tossed her over my shoulder, carrying out of the room, protesting.

"I am perfectly capable of walking!" She scolded me.

"I sure hope you are."

"Put me down!"

"Nope!"

"Nii-san!" I tuned out whatever she was going to say next and concentrated on holding onto her while she squirmed.

"Hey, everyone! Look what the cat dragged in," I announced as we entered the main room of the house, where a handful of people were gathered.

"I have a reputation to uphold!" Kushina snapped. "You should fear _The_ Habanero's—"

"Sorry, I'm not going to be scared of a vegetable, no matter how spicy, that would be silly." The second after I said it, I thought I crossed a line, but she just laughed so hard I quickly set her on her feet so she could actually breathe.

"Vegetable! Ha!" She almost throttled me with a hug. I wheezed and patted her on the back, not entirely sure what was so rib-cracking hilarious.

"I think I broke her," I whined, which got everyone else chuckling, eventually they were laughing as Kushina's laugh turned hysterical

Gradually, everything subsided and I reclined on one of the unused couches, swapping stories with Kushina and Minato. While I couldn't talk about most of what happened to me, they had been on several absolutely ridiculous, if moderately important, missions. When I got tired of craning my neck to look at them and sit comfortably, I sprawled out and laid my head in Kushina's lap, looking up at her and Minato, who she was leaning against as well.

After a while, Kushina got tired of fidgeting with the ends of her hair and started to play with mine.

The only way to describe the afternoon was lazy and peaceful. The other kids played or studied quietly, Natsuki spent the time playing from Nagato's lap, and Fusō and Ise had been in and out of the room running errands. Eventually, I found myself dozing off. I didn't quite sleep, but I faked it, my voice slightly sore from the amount of speaking I had done in the past day. The seals around the house hummed with chakra, lighting up my senses. I slowed my heart rate and breathing until it mimicked a deep sleep or meditation.

The war outside the village had eased in recent months and was coming to a close, even though the people were still tightening of their belts and the lack of trade. I could almost pretend it was a distant horror story, at least for the time being. The Oshiro clan wasn't a threat to the clan, not really. The threat was to the village. If all else failed, I could kill the Oshiro clan head, damn the consequences. No person who would raise a hand against their children in anger, no matter the circumstances, deserved their life.

"Is he asleep?" Minato asked softly.

"Yeah, why?" Kushina asked.

Minato made an odd noise in response. "He's different than I remember. It's still him, but different."

"It's been three years since we last saw him, of course he's going to be different."

"It's more than that. He's not as—intense as he used to be."

Kushina didn't answer.

"He's happier too. Like—I don't know how to explain it."

Kushina rubbed the seal on my forehead. "He doesn't cover up the seal anymore." She took my hand in hers and started to examine the seal on it. "We never did manage to find a better way to take it off."

"Kichiro would never let us try even if we did."

There was a long silence between them. Gin was pestering Takeshi about something business-related and the two girls were trying to do each other's hair, but as far as I could tell, with the stifled curses to go by, they weren't having much luck. The other kids were doing kid-related things that I didn't quite understand.

Nagato stood up with his sister in his arms and laid the girl on top of me. Minato and Kushina must have given him an odd look because he answered an unasked question. "It's cute," Nagato responded defensively.

"She's civilian," Minato reminded Nagato. "He's not."

I heard Nagato's clothes rustle as he shrugged. "Her chakra is too close to mine for him to react. There's an ANBU agent whose great grandmother was an Uzumaki during one of our training exercises and Kichiro didn't even notice the threat until it was too late. He thought it was me. Uzumaki chakra is a blind spot in his sensing."

Kushina rubbed my temple with her thumb.

"He looks so worn out," she commented.

"He's the only medic, aside from Tsunade-sama, who has the stamina and the skill to survive in ANBU. He is the only medic the village can afford to dedicate to ANBU as well. Not only is that a lot of responsibility, but it drains him, even more so lately since he's had to take on a student."

"Aren't you—"

"I'm technically a full-fledged agent, but until I leave his team, I'm virtually still his student."

"I don't like ANBU," Kushina pouted and the conversation lapsed into silence. Nagato pulled a blanket over my bare feet.

"You look worn out too," Minato offered.

Nagato's clothes rustled as he shrugged. "Missions." He grunted unhelpfully.

The conversation ended and I was about to drift off to sleep for real when Kushina spoke. "He's not scared anymore."

"Scared? Nii-san is never scared," Nagato refuted.

Kushina shook her head and started to rub circles behind the right side of my jaw. It was surprisingly relaxing. "He acts like he doesn't care, he acts fearless, but it's never fooled me. I think he knows, to some extent, his tough act is impossibly easy to see through, but either he's gotten better at acting or he's not scared anymore."

"What would he be scared of?"

Kushina touched my forehead. "He isn't as strong as everyone thinks he is," Kushina murmured.

"How can you—"

"I refuse to believe he's changed so much that he can bring himself to actually, intentionally hurt someone."

Nagato shifted and tangled his fingers in the hem of my pants. After a few false starts, Nagato answered, monotone. "Just before the Hokage confronted us about the citizenship issue, Nii-san was tested. In ANBU, everyone is randomly tested. One is where they test your loyalty and nerve. They knew Nii-san was going to fail it from the very beginning, but they went through with the test anyways. He's never cared about the village, he only cares about the people he's close to so they threatened us to get to him. He wouldn't tell me anything more, so I stole his file from Kagami's office to see what happened. The details are too classified for me to share, but he attempted to set the Kyuubi on the village, and almost succeeded."

"He would never—"

"He would have succeeded if it wasn't for Sakumo. The Hokage thought he was bluffing and called him on it. Obviously, more happened afterwards, but that, coupled with several other things that happened shortly after, they pushed him too far and it changed him. For better or for worse, he's different now. Before, he couldn't kill someone, not on purpose, but now he's perfectly capable of murder and deliberately chooses not to. It's an important distinction."

There was no response to that.

Nagato stood up and left several minutes later.

"Do you think he's right?" Minato asked.

"We'll see for ourselves. We can challenge him at dinner. If Nagato is wrong, he'll refuse, just like he always does, no harm done."

"And if he accepts?"

"We get our asses kicked and deal with it."

"He can't be that good."

"We've been on near-constant missions for the past three years; he's been trapped in the village, training."

Minato didn't answer that.

I wasn't particularly tired, but with Nagato running a perimeter sweep and his sister heavy and warm against my chest, I saw no reason not to catch up on the consistent lack of sleep I had been getting in ANBU.


	60. Chapter 60

I woke an hour later with Kushina's stomach growling in my ear. She was definitely asleep, and somehow, Natsuki was still lying on top of me, entertaining herself by carefully drawing on my arm, the one not trapped by the back of the couch, with some kind of pen. Nagato was curled at my feet with a thick book on Fūinjutsu. When I finally caught his eye, he smirked at me. I didn't particularly mind. Sealing ink, at least Uzumaki ink, didn't stick to anything unless it was infused with chakra, not even paper. A little bit of warm water would wash it right off. There was a bit of paper beside my head, but it only had a few strokes. Apparently, my arm made a better canvas, at least in the three-year-old's opinion.

I rolled my eyes and jabbed my toe into Nagato's hip, zapping him with the only lightning jutsu I knew. He yelped and jumped up, shattering the silence and waking both Minato and Kushina up. Everyone looked at Nagato in confused annoyance.

"Natsuki!" Ise scolded after Nagato sat down sheepishly, sending me betrayed looks. The girl's head snapped to her father. "What have you been told about where the ink goes?"

"Onna paper," she mumbled, pulling the pen away from my arm. Ise took it away and lifted her off me, setting her on the floor so I could sit up

"Right. That means you don't draw on your big brother while he's asleep."

"Yes, To-chan," she murmured, barely audible.

"Go help your aunts in the kitchen."

"Yes, To-chan."

As soon as she was out of the room, snickers started to fill the air, even Ise struggled to hold back a chuckle.

"She drew all over my face, didn't she?"

Ise nodded. I just shrugged in response and poked Nagato with the lightning jutsu again. He leapt up and tried to attack me, but I swiped my hand down my arm as if I was wiping water off and shoved the ink-covered hand towards him. Nagato dodged the worst of it, but I managed to score a glancing hit on his nose, staining it black. Unfortunately, that put Nagato between Kushina, Minato, and me. Minato was the first to react, grabbing Nagato from behind. The rest of the room howled with laughter, including the dogs, Nagato the hardest of all, as I drew cat whiskers on Nagato's cheeks.

"To-chan, I got whiskers just like you!"

Minato shoved Nagato towards his father, who caught him in a headlock and ruffled his hair. Three of the kids and one of the dogs tried to join the budding wrestling match. Instincts took over and I jumped out of the way at the last second and flipped backwards over them.

"Missed me!" I sang, dodging two others while the rush of panic wore off. Four of the dogs charged me, leaping over the couch in the process. I jumped over them as well, sticking to the ceiling.

"Wait, wait, wait!" Ise interrupted. "Take this outside please, so nothing gets broken!"

I scampered across the ceiling and the kids chased after me, quickly outstripped by the dogs. Minato, Nagato, and Kushina followed, chasing after me on the ceiling. Just before I leapt through the door, I stopped them. "No weapons, please, and it's ten percent around civilians," I reminded them. I was completely unarmed, but the three of them weren't. Nagato dumped his weapons against the house, followed quickly by Minato's and Kushina's. By that point the kids had caught up and I was jumping around the backyard, avoiding the grasping hands and the dogs' attempts to tackle me. I had to get creative when Minato and Kushina followed Nagato onto the field. The overcast sky looked rather ominous, though the air didn't feel like it was about to rain.

I riled them up with well-aimed taunts while I mentally set a reasonably-sized area to keep the game contained in. It was much more difficult than I expected. The hard part was finding a place to land without getting caught. I had to plan at least five jumps ahead. I landed poorly once and covered up my slip by turning the area to mud. The kids shrieked in delight, trying to fling mud at me until the air was thick with it. I slipped and slid alongside them and flung the mud right back, careful not to hit any of the kids in the face. Ten minutes into the game, Natsuki somehow managed to escape the house and toddle over to the excitement. By the time Fusō ran out after her, the little girl was already in the muddy area.

For shinobi, remaining at ten percent of our full speed when interacting with civilian kids was one of the best safety precautions. Kids could still track our movements, for the most part, and we always had a massive burst of speed to stop anything bad from happening. I winced as Natsuki slipped on the slick ground. It would have been fine, but one of the older kids slipped and fell at the same time and would have landed on top of her. No one would have gotten hurt, but I didn't want to deal with a crying three-year old, so I pushed chakra into my feet to stabilize my footing and scooped her out of the mud.

"Minato! Catch!" I called out. I would have tossed her to Nagato, but Minato's reactions were faster. Minato panicked for a moment at having a mud-covered three-year old flying at him, but he managed to catch her anyways. The girl shrieked in delight as Minato dodged the mud ball Kushina had tossed at him.

"Again! Again!" She clapped her hands.

"Nagato!" Minato tossed her towards the youngest boy. Nagato caught her and immediately passed her on to Kushina, who sent her back to me. Unfortunately, I wasn't quite expecting the child flying at me and had accidentally trapped myself between Gin and his dog. I couldn't escape in time without breaking the ten percent limitation. I tossed Natsuki to Kushina as the dog and child tackled me.

"I've been caught, but you missed!" I announced. The game quickly turned into an odd game of monkey-in-the-middle. I sunk into the ground and popped up outside the mud. Every time one of the kids or dogs slipped and fell flat, I pulled them into the mud and out behind me. They spread out and stood around the edges of the mud circle, throwing mud and cheering. Minato went down next underneath three of the dogs, and Kushina picked up Natsuki before she could hit the ground from Minato's wild toss in her direction.

By that point, both Kushina and Nagato were navigating almost entirely by chakra sensing. There was no other way to tell us all apart. I had mud caked in my clothes and smeared over my skin. Of all the others, I was the cleanest, and I doubted a stranger would have been able to tell the color of my hair. My hands were buried in the mud almost halfway up my forearms as I made Kushina and Nagato's footing as difficult as possible. The last kid, I had no idea who it was, as one of the dogs took Nagato down with themselves, forcing Kushina to toss the girl to herself. After almost two minutes, it was Kushina against two dogs. It took a lot of concentration, but I managed to make them all face-plant at the same time, leaving only Natsuki standing. She hopped up and down, ecstatic.

We started to head back towards the house, but one of the women came out to stop us.

"You are absolutely not dragging all of that mud inside!" She scolded.

"But—" I tried to protest, but she wouldn't hear it.

"River, all of you, and take care of Natsuki. Which one of you is Kichiro?"

I was in the middle of the pack of children and dogs, so I raised my hand. She reached inside the door and pulled out my sticks and tossed them to me. I caught them in one hand, eliciting a handful of giggles. The sticks I put in the empty holster still attached to the small of my back and I picked up Natsuki.

"Go, all of you," she snapped and we scuttled off. As soon as we reached the road, I realized I didn't have any shoes on, and aside from Natsuki, I was the only one. I easily fixed the problem with a little bit of chakra between my feet and the ground.

The road to the river was fairly busy, but everyone gave the pack of mud-covered half-pints a wide berth, especially when several started to run ahead. That didn't distract me from the state of the people. They were hungry, that much was obvious, and angry. With the dogs bounding around us, everyone knew who we were.

Nagato and I made up the center of the group, Minato and Kushina trailing behind us. The rest of the kids were knotted around us, and the dogs stayed on the fringes of the group, a somewhat intimidating barrier against the disapproving glares.

I handed Natsuki to Nagato and slowed down to fall in step between Minato and Kushina. "Do they always glare like that?"

Kushina gave a wry smile. "The clan isn't well-liked by civilians."

I frowned.

"It's always been that way, especially for the other orphans, ever since we first arrived."

"Why?"

Kushina shrugged. "The orphans were used to more attention than they got after we moved here. At first, a few of them acted out because of it, and the stigma never really went away."

My frown deepened. "They were little kids at the time."

"People aren't as nice or forgiving as you. You would forgive anyone, no matter what they did."

"I wouldn't—"

"You would," Kushina said firmly. "It's one thing about you I know you can't change." She took my hand, laying her head against my shoulder.

I wasn't as certain, but I didn't protest it.

"Natsuki, please don't put your fingers—" Nagato broke off, gagging, struggling to keep the three-year-old in his arms and out of trouble, though I wasn't entirely sure how a three-year-old could get into trouble while being carried. I quickly rescued Nagato, lifting the girl out of his arms so he could spit out the mud she stuffed in his mouth. She was half his size, I noticed belatedly, and Nagato had little experience with children younger than himself.

I ruffled Nagato's hair as he made a show of retching. "It's just a little dirt," I teased. Nagato knocked my hand away. I set Natsuki on my shoulders too free up my hands. The mud was already starting to dry and stiffen on our skin.

I glanced over at Minato, who I noticed was a lot quieter than I remembered. He took in everything carefully and seemed understand far more of it than I expected.

It only took us a few more minutes to reach the river. I stood downstream of the kids and played lifeguard, just in case. Natsuki sat in the shallows and played a few feet away from me. Minato was first to get all the mud rinsed off and as soon as he climbed on top of the water, I knelt beside Natsuki to clean her up first with a game of monkey-see-monkey-do.

Kushina quickly rinsed off the mud by diving underwater for a good three minutes. I barely managed to keep track of her underneath the lazily flowing water, but she surfaced beside me and I let her take over getting Natsuki clean.

The other kids waded into the water to rinse themselves off. Two of them tried to show off by water walking, but for Uzumaki civilians, the chakra control required for water walking was beyond the abilities of all but the best seal masters. They barely made it two steps out before the water deepened too much for them to stabilize themselves. The splashes they managed were fairly impressive. Luckily, each of them took the responsibility of making sure their respective clothes were clean without being told.

Kushina handed Natsuki to Nagato, who took her to the edge of the river to play while Minato took on the role of lifeguard.

"Nii-san?" Kushina asked, crouching beside where I was treading water.

"Yeah?" I looked up at her, shifting so I floated on my back like an otter. Although I had always been rather apathetic to swimming before, I was built for it now, which made it quite enjoyable.

"You started the game in the mud for a reason. What was it? And don't try and tell me it was because you were embarrassed about being caught sleeping."

"Nagato rarely gets to play games in ANBU. It's all training and work. He deserves to mess around, at least for a little while."

"But what about you?"

I shrugged and tipped my head back to stare at the prematurely darkened sky. The sun would set in less than an hour.

"Don't you miss the games?"

"Any chance I had at any semblance of a childhood died with our father."

"But do you miss it?"

"It's hard to miss something I don't remember."

"You don't remember?" She sounded heartbroken. As if to make things worse, lightning crackled across the sky, followed immediately by thunder that would make even the most stoic of men flinch. The kids cheered and the dogs yipped as rain started to pour down. Minato began to gather them up to head back but I ignored his questioning looks and grabbed Kushina's hand, which was dangling at her side, and pulled myself out of the water, forcing her attention to me, even though she wouldn't look up.

"Kushina, I remember when our father died, I remember our mother explaining death to us. From the day he died to the day she did, she would tell me, every morning and night, to take care of you. I was barely more than a toddler at the time but I took the charge seriously. Did you ever find it odd that we almost never argued as kids? I couldn't take care of you if you were mad at me."

"But—"

"My childhood died the same day as her."

"Nii-san—" She broke off. Finally, she met my eyes, not faltering the slightest. "You've been taking care of me ever since, teaching me, making sure I was okay—why didn't you ever tell me? I-I knew you were doing more than a normal brother, but—"

I shrugged and pulled her into a hug. "It wouldn't change anything whether you knew or not, and you wouldn't have really understood. Besides, even though the circumstances were rather horrible, you were still the best little sister I could ever have hoped for." Lightning flashed again, and I started to pull her towards where the other kids had left us behind and were hurrying back home, Nagato perched on the back of the largest dog and watching the sky carefully while Minato carried Natsuki.

It took us a quarter of the time to get back to the house where towels were waiting to be bundled around us as we came in.

"With Kichiro here, at least we don't have to worry if any of you get sick," Takeshi commented as I walked in last.

Misaki ducked out of the clutches of one of the women trying to dry her off and scampered up to me holding a fresh towel. The woman, Kaede, chuckled as the girl blushed. I sent a confused glance at Kaede and accepted the towel with a quiet thank you.

Once we had all dried off and changed clothes, I stubbornly stuck to wearing a spare uniform I found stashed in my medical pouch, and everyone sat down for a late dinner. The food was depressingly simple, mostly rice and a few vegetables, but it was better prepared than what Nagato and I were accustomed to, even though ANBU fare was almost identical.

With three doctors and three shinobi, four, if Minato was dumping all his pay into the Uzumaki account like the rest of us, they could afford a little bit more food-wise. The clan would be rich, if it wasn't for the seven children they were feeding and putting through school and the cost of paper in wartime, especially of a high enough quality for Fūinjutsu.

"Kichiro, have you been keeping up with your Fūinjutsu practice?" One of the women asked pointedly at the end of the meal.

I winced. "You noticed the missing scrolls, didn't you?"

"Missing scrolls?" Gin asked sharply.

"I've been borrowing scrolls on occasion," I answered, uncomfortably aware that every word I said was being scrutinized.

"Then why haven't you—"

"ANBU aren't allowed contact," I responded quietly, it quieted everyone in an instant. "So, I borrowed the scrolls to make sure Nagato and I didn't let what skill we have fall by the wayside."

Now that I thought about it, I had been in the house, breaking protocol, far more often than I thought.

"How far have you gotten?" Kushina asked, interested.

"I'm partway through level seventeen, as is Nagato."

"All by yourself?" Kushina asked I wasn't sure if she was surprised or disappointed.

"Nagato and I have been working together, but there's only so much we could do with the limited time we had."

"That's not bad," Ise commented firmly. "Are either of you planning on specializing in Fūinjutsu?"

Nagato and I shook our heads quickly. "I'm specialized in Iryo-Ninjutsu, Wind Ninjutsu, Taijutsu, and I'm currently working on Earth. Nagato is specializing in Taijutsu and Ninjutsu, he's halfway there."

"Do you have teammates?" Kushina asked, frowning.

"No. I recently acquired a few students, but they're not a part of our team."

"That's an extremely unbalanced them," she commented.

"We're a first-response defense team."

"Aren't Jinchuuriki normally the better—"

"You have no idea how powerful a fully-trained Jinchuuriki is," I responded in a low voice, meeting everyone's eyes in turn. "With that kind of power comes a responsibility. Even if I consented to it, the village can't afford to point me at Iwa and order me to destroy it."

"Why would that be a bad thing?" Gin asked.

I waited until he met my eye before answering. "There's two ways to win a war. One, the other side gives up, and two, the other side dies. Aside from brief, critical sorties into enemy territory, I'm the only Jinchuuriki to play a public role in this war and my kill count is still in the single digits after almost five years of active duty."

"Three-and-a-half." Kushina murmured, studying her empty plate.

"Sorry?"

"You were prisoner in Iwa for a year and five months, that means you've only been an active shinobi for three-and-a-half years."

Nagato brought the discussion back to the point I was trying to make. "To put Kichiro's stats in perspective, my kill count is more than double his. I've been a shinobi for less than three years and have taken two missions outside the village." I flinched, as did several of the adults.

"What—" Kushina started to ask, but I interrupted.

"Enough, kill counts are not an appropriate conversation topic in front of civilians."

Kushina ducked her head, chastised.

Minato's fingers held out the sign for training. I signed 'why' back. Several of the kids excused themselves to play. Kushina grabbed Minato's fingers before he could respond. Frowning, I let Ise draw my attention away from them.

"Kichiro, last night, you mentioned that you were here somewhat on a mission."

"Yeah..." I trailed off. After a moment, I refocused my attention on the question. "Three years ago, I had a confrontation with the head of the Oshiro clan, remember?" I didn't wait for them to acknowledge the question. "Well, he never got over me telling him off, and it came back to bite me when I got saddled with two extra students, one of which is his illegitimate child. Since I inconvenienced him the first time, he's trying to get me back and you all are stuck in the middle. Kagami and the Hokage wouldn't dare try and cross me again, not after—" Nagato cringed and Ise's eyes narrowed, but I plowed on. "So, I'm here to protect all of you until this comes to a head or blows over. The Hokage is hoping for the first option so the Oshiro clan can be defanged."

Takeshi went very still. "The Oshiro clan has the ear of the Daimyō," he noted, barely audible, but everyone still heard him just fine.

"I'm one of the few true wild cards in this village. It's stupid, but as far as I can tell, in this political climate, if I yield to the charges, the Daimyō unofficially has more power than the Hokage. If I refuse to acknowledge the charges, then the Hokage ends up the bigger fish in the pond. I would much rather have someone who actually knows what's going on and takes a near-release of a Bijū to cow over someone who can be intimidated and manipulated by a nine-year-old."

"I do not believe that is the best of ideas," Takeshi admonished softly.

"I'm open to any solution you can think of."

Takeshi sighed. "I'll think of something,"

I nodded, letting the conversation lapse into silence, but aware that the current plan was the only viable one. Ise took the opportunity to stand up and start clearing the table. A few pointed looks later, the remaining children stood up to help. I was about to join them when Fusō grabbed my wrist. I barely managed to avoid flinching. "You don't have to—"

I cut her off with a shrug and picked up her plate. Everyone's dishes had been practically licked clean. Using a little bit of chakra, I rolled one of the plates across my shoulders and tossed it at Nagato who was closest, though he had his back to me. Fusō gasped in alarm as the plate looked as if it was going to hit the floor, but at the last second, Nagato caught the plate on his foot and flipped it up on top of the small stack one of the passing kids was carrying.

Minato and Kushina, both of whom were still seated, started to toss the chopsticks at me like senbon. I caught them between my fingers, twirling them and then flicking them towards Nagato, who was not thrilled, and collected them all and sent them on into the kitchen with Yuzu. Under my breath, I muttered, " _Blunt the knives, bend the forks, smash the bottles and burn the corks—_ " Fusō made a noise of protest, so I stopped, even though she couldn't understand what I was saying.

"Looks like you're still up to your tricks," Kushina noted pointedly.

I rolled my eyes. "Of course, they're da—I mean, very useful."

"Any new ones?"

"Some."

Nagato rolled his eyes. "He knows the two of you want to spar, you can just ask and get your humiliation at getting your ass whipped out of the way."

"Nagato!" I scolded, but I was barely heard.

"As if a little pipsqueak like you could—"

"Enough!" I snapped in unison with several of the adults.

"Take it outside," Fusō added.

I opened my mouth to protest when Nagato grabbed my wrist and pulled me outside.

"Nothing above A-rank, no kill shots," Nagato was negotiating the rules before I regained my footing.

"A-rank?" Minato asked, wide-eyed.

Nagato shrugged, shoving a paper seal into my hand with my weapons in it. "You pick up a lot of S-rank techniques in ANBU."

"Stop exaggerating," I admonished. "You only know one S-rank."

"You know four!"

"Two—"

"What about that tornado?"

"It's a B-rank at best."

"We can do that—"

"No! Absolutely not, you almost passed out the last time. Besides, it's only A-rank."

"Well, that's still three S-ranks."

"What's the third?"

"It's the one where—"

"Fine, we have three."

"Are you really haggling down how many S-rank jutsu you know?" Kushina asked in disbelief.

I rolled my eyes and pulled the remainder of my weapons out of the storage seal. In less than a minute, both Nagato and I were armed and armored. Three minutes later, Minato and Kushina were as well, and had set up a barrier to prevent any stray attacks from escaping the fighting zone.


	61. Chapter 61

"Strategy eighty-one?" Nagato asked hopefully.

"No." I told him as we faced off against Minato and Kushina. "That's too dangerous."

"You're a medic."

"I can't split myself into four."

"Kage Bunshin."

"You remember what happened the last time one of my Kage Bunshin tried to heal someone."

"What happened?" Kushina blurted.

I ignored her, glancing around the area and deciding on our strategy. Nagato answered her quietly.

"The Jinchuuriki seal is weakened on the bunshin because it doesn't have a stabilizing material. Kichiro's chakra mixes with the Kyuubi's and the Biju chakra killed half a team before Kichiro realized what happened. Kichiro collapsed as soon as the bunshins dispelled because of the mental strain it takes to heal was quadrupled. The entire team died before we could get another medic in. Kichiro didn't wake up until an hour later."

I didn't look at either Kushina or Minato. They didn't have any comments.

"Kichiro, how about strategy six?"

"That one is just cruel, save it for Kiri ninja." My voice didn't have much energy, but Nagato made up for it, rolling his eyes dramatically

"Fine! Thirty-nine then."

"Backup is three-c," I rolled my eyes back at him and took up my position one step behind and slightly to Nagato's left. Minato and Kushina stood shoulder-to-shoulder like a normal team, though Kushina was obviously the lead.

Without warning, the fight began. I intercepted several projectiles headed towards Nagato as the boy turned into a blur and engaged Kushina.

Shinobi were proud and independent people. Even in Konoha, the only time teammates truly worked together was when they were either facing a superior opponent or had the advantage of numbers. In a battle between two teams, everyone generally picked an opponent and either won or lost to them. The fact that Nagato and I didn't follow that tradition, and often switched opponents on the turn of a dime to take or deflect an attack meant for the other, sometimes even abandoning one of our opponents to help the other, was what made us a stronger unit and one of the reasons we were allowed to remain a duo instead of joining a team for missions. When Minato stayed off Kushina's shoulder running support instead of engaging me, I knew the rest of the spar would be a test of teamwork as much as skill.

I paced the edges of the fight, waiting. Nagato was faster than Kushina, but Minato was good at running support. There was no way, even with Minato's help, Kushina could keep up with Nagato in Taijutsu for long. From what I could tell, Kushina and I were about even when it came to Taijutsu, but unlike me, Kushina didn't have weapons to fall back on if it failed.

With a twist I knew I couldn't pull off, Nagato brought his leg up to kick Kushina's unprotected ribs with his heel while purposefully leaving himself open for an attack from Minato. I cursed under my breath, too far out of position to counter Minato. A moment later, Nagato swore loudly. Instead of taking the opportunity to potentially take Nagato out, he blocked Nagato's kick, giving Kushina just enough time to grab his thigh. Nagato switched with a log to escape and then I switched with the log to take his place, a seamless maneuver that we had practiced until we could manage it in a half-second. Kushina was then holding onto my thigh and attempting to dislocate my leg while Minato attempted to do the same to my knee. Too late, they had already committed to the maneuver, but instead of holding Nagato's left leg, they held my right and I rolled with the twist and kicked at their heads with my other leg. It was my job to take the most damaging strikes for Nagato because a hit that might kill him would only slow me down. I could heal myself while he protected me. He couldn't.

Minato managed to duck under my counter, but Kushina didn't see it coming until it was almost too late. She dodged the worst of it, but I managed to clip the top of her head with my knee, sending her staggering away.

I landed in a crouch while Minato was forced to defend Kushina from Nagato's immediate onslaught. I tried to take the opportunity, but Minato resorted to Ninjutsu, swinging a blade of wind in a circle around himself, forcing me to block it and protect Nagato. Minato may have been a genius prodigy, but no one beat me in my element. Nagato pulled back to run support while I engaged both Minato and a mostly-recovered Kushina in Ninjutsu.

Both Minato and Kushina were wind-natured. The air whipped around the fight area furiously, tearing up chunks of earth and flinging them around. It took both of them, but they kept up with my attacks just fine. Somehow, all the pebbles and dust seemed to be attracted to them, valiantly attempting to blind them. It wasn't as successful as I hoped, but it added a lot of pressure. Apparently, I got closer to winning than they were comfortable with and they threw down enough smoke bombs to fill the entire fight area. For a moment, I felt utterly suffocated and nearly grabbed Nagato and fled. I couldn't sense anything, and I could barely feel Nagato behind me. My mind went to the time when he nearly died from chakra exhaustion years ago. It was only a spar, but it had dragged on too long—Nagato had spent too much chakra on a jutsu too advanced for him and he was dying while the smoke bombs hid the team that was about to surround us and I needed to be in too many places at once—

"Kai!" Nagato shouted, his chakra jabbing me painfully to dispel the Genjutsu I missed. I dropped to one knee for a moment to regain my wits. "Kirigakure no Jutsu," he murmured, the back of his legs pressed against my lower back. Nagato's chakra saturated the air around me and I managed to calm down enough to finish the spar. I still couldn't sense, but I was so used to Nagato's jutsu that it didn't matter. Mist soaked the air and attached itself to the smoke, weighing it down so it covered the ground instead of filling the air. A second surge of chakra replaced the smoke with Nagato's mist. Sensing might have been out but I could hear just fine. When Minato tried to attack Nagato, I was there to meet him, the air beginning to swirl around us and the temperature drastically falling. Humidity and wind were not the slightest bit pleasant when they occurred naturally. When they were amped up with chakra, it was twice as bad. In thirty seconds, Nagato and I were in the eye of a short tornado, with tiny, sharp slivers of ice spinning around us and filling the entire fighting area. After ten seconds, Nagato couldn't sustain the mist jutsu without depleting his reserves more than either of us were comfortable at this stage of the spar, so we let the jutsu drop, the ice shards falling to the ground and immediately beginning to melt. Minato, with Kushina crouched at his feet and maintaining a defensive seal grinned back at us.

Nagato whined a complaint.

"Okay, there goes our backup plan," I muttered. "Genjutsu?"

Nagato whined again. "Already tried, it didn't stick."

"How can—never mind. Strategy eighty-one it is."

Nagato only whined again. "But Fūinjutsu!"

Kushina dropped the defensive barrier and they darted forward.

"Then we're stuck with eight-z."

"But Fūinjutsu and it doesn't work!"

"It will."

"Are you mad?" Nagato demanded.

"You've done it before!" I retorted as I engaged Minato in Taijutsu. The entire exchange was an act to make them paranoid. A normal opponent wouldn't care about the exchange, but Minato and Kushina knew the dangers of attempting seals that 'didn't work.'

Minato's three-pronged kunai were a good match against my sticks, especially since he was faster and, frankly, better than me. However, I was bigger and I'd been training against ANBU agents. Short-range Ninjutsu was as rare as the people who could use it. Unfortunately for Minato, I was fully capable of using it in hand-to-hand combat. I managed to cut the inside of his upper right arm with a wind blade just deep enough to cause him pain every time he moved. Shortly after that, I managed another cut down his right shin. At that point, he switched places with Kushina. The switch gave me the space I needed to take a step forward, putting the drops of blood that fell to the ground behind me and safely in Nagato's reach.

Minato caught on to what we were attempting quicker than I wanted. Nagato started to draw the seal on his wrist and both Minato and Kushina panicked. I grinned. They fell for the trick, throwing themselves at Nagato, only to for Nagato to unseal dual blades and hold it to their necks faster than they could react while I stood at his back with two kunai on the back of their necks, trapping them.

"Dead," Nagato and I said in unison. It was much more dramatic than necessary, but the entire purpose of the match was to show off. My head was turned to smirk at Minato and I knew Nagato had an even wider smirk for Kushina.

My sister swore as we both backed off and Nagato smeared the seal on his wrist, not that it would have worked anyways.

"Language," I admonished, still smirking.

"Damn it! How did we fall for that?" Kushina scowled.

"I'm wondering the same thing. Using someone else's blood against them automatically destabilizes any attempted seal and any work otherwise is all theoretical," Nagato commented, instigating her further.

"That's enough Nagato, next time, the both of you need to use your heads, especially when you know a good portion of my arsenal, and by extension, Nagato's, relies on trickery and manipulation."

"Again," Minato demanded.

"No, one spar is enough for tonight. I'm not familiar enough with your current skillset to make sure you don't push yourselves too hard." It wasn't the real reason. I knew they could have fought at least two more rounds before their chakra levels started to feel the strain. The Genjutsu had shaken me more than I expected. Even though I knew I could easily heal any injury that we would be willing to inflict upon each other, I couldn't help but think about how many times that spar could have gone south.

"We're not—" Kushina tried to protest, but she broke off when I narrowed my eyes.

"I don't care, that's more than enough conflict for one night. Inside, everyone."

Kushina opened her mouth to protest, but I put my arm around her shoulders and ushered her in. I sent all three of them upstairs, feeling far more exhausted than I should have.

"Kichiro?" Ise asked softly as I sat down on the bottom step once they scampered up and out of sight.

"I'm fine," I answered automatically.

"If you're really fine, I'll eat my right hand. Why are you really here? Any single ninja can do the job you and Nagato are supposedly doing here just as well," Ise murmured, sitting down beside me and putting his arm around me. Ise gently rubbed at the knots in my shoulders. I closed my eyes and laid my head against his chest, listening to his heartbeat. It was much stronger than Nagato's, but the rhythm was the same.

"I wish I could go back to just being a Genin. All I had to do was fix people. It was simple, straightforward, Sakumo took care of everything else and now—" I took a deep breath and relaxed against Ise, wrapping my arms around his torso.

"You don't have to do everything on your own, Kichiro," Ise said when I pulled off the strip of cloth still tied around my forehead.

"And if I'm the only one who can do it?" I asked sardonically.

He didn't have an answer to that.

"If I really wanted, I could walk away from everything," I commented.

Ise didn't even flinch. "You could," he agreed. "It would definitely be treason to do so."

"I've never claimed to be loyal."

"Verbally, probably not, but actions betray your heart and yours doesn't mean ill to anyone."

I grunted.

"Kichiro," he murmured sadly. "We've been worried about you—I've been worried."

"I'm sorry."

"We knew you would take care of Nagato, but I was worried about the lengths you would go to ensure he remained safe."

"I'm sorry."

Ise hugged me tightly.

"No one's listening, Kichiro, I know you've been holding back details, is there anything you want to share without anyone listening?"

"Nagato is crouched on the landing above us," I deadpanned.

"You know what I meant."

"I know," I responded, tightening my grip for a moment before pulling away. "I'm going to run patrol, be back in an hour."

"Kichiro—" Ise tried to stop me, but I was already gone.

I very deliberately avoided thinking about the conversation as I paced across the roof, my senses on high alert. After about twenty minutes, I sensed Ise's chakra go back to his room alongside Fusō's. Both were obviously upset. After a minute, I let them have their privacy, quickly verifying everyone else in the house was asleep. Nagato, however, followed them, hovering outside their door, barely detectable. I monitored his chakra in the back of my mind as I perched on the highest point of the roof, periodically turning to look out around the house, chakra making it easier to see through the dark shadows cast by the crescent moon.

I wasn't sure why, but Ise didn't activate the defensive barriers around the house before he went to sleep. After both Ise and Fusō went to sleep a half hour later, I followed Nagato's chakra as he snuck into their room. He sat down on the floor at the end of their bed and began to meditate. Leaving him there, I activated the seals around the house when I returned inside and laid down on one of the couches in the main room.

I didn't sleep that night. I just sat on the couch, my knees pulled up to my chest, staring at the nearest window.

Kushina was the first person wander in once morning came, still mostly-asleep. She sat down beside me and I pulled her into a tight hug.

"Nii-san, are you alright?"

I didn't know how, but she cracked an emotional dam I didn't even know I built. She fully woke in an instant, alarmed.

"Nii-san!" She exclaimed, pulling back to try and look me in the eye, but I refused to let go. She didn't struggle, only hugged me back tightly as I hid my face in her shoulder. Her hair obscured the ambient light of the impending sunrise as she rubbed my back soothingly, using a simple chakra trick I taught her to relax muscles. It wasn't very effective because of her imperfect chakra control but it helped a little.

"I'm so sorry, Kushina, I'm so very sorry."

She only tightened her grip as the shoulder of her dress steadily dampened with tears and I continued to repeat apologies. Empty reassurance never convinced me before, she knew it wouldn't now. I wasn't even entirely sure why I was crying, but I couldn't stop.

Eventually, the tears subsided, but I left my face buried in her shoulder, shamefully hiding my face.

"Nii-san?" Kushina asked cautiously, resting her head on top of mine. "Why were you apologizing?"

I hugged her tighter for a moment. "I left with barely a word to you, and I stayed away for three years and I should not have done that, I'm so sorry."

She opened her mouth to respond but stopped herself. Finally, she spoke. "I had a chance to enter ANBU. I'm good enough. I would have been the only Fūinjutsu specialist. When I told Minato about the offer he told me to take it. Minato and I, we work great together, but we work around each other more than we work with each other, that's why we aren't allowed missions by ourselves. You and Nagato attack in tandem, barely needing to communicate. Minato and I can only do that when we're working on joint seals." She squirmed until she could lean against the back of the couch and still keep both arms tightly around my chest. "I talked to Sakumo, and he told me if I joined, it would be a year, likely two before I could return. I thought about it for ages and realized that it would be an extremely difficult decision to make. Then I thought about you, how hard of a change it must have been, especially right after Iwa, how you must have felt, and I couldn't voluntarily go through with that, especially since Minato doesn't have the skills for ANBU, his jutsu are too distinctive. I knew that the only time I'd probably be able to see you was when I was injured or sick and I couldn't make you live with knowing about all the dangerous missions I would be going on."

I had no idea what her point was and frowned in confusion.

"I didn't join ANBU because I knew, or at least I had enough of an idea of, what it did to you. I forgave you for leaving the moment you left."

"Thank you," I murmured.

"Now that you're back, can you go remind Fugaku he's a stuck-up ass?"

A choked laugh escaped my throat. She relaxed her grip on me and lifted my head off her shoulder to wipe away the tearstains on my cheeks. Her fingers briefly brushed over the seal on my forehead and my stomach twisted when her eyes darted up to it several times. She hated the marks as much as I did, but she wasn't yet accustomed to them. I made a mental note to find my hitai-ate and start wearing it around the rest of the clan. I hadn't worn the thing since I last took a shift in the hospital.

"I missed spending time together, just us. I love Minato to death, but it's not the same. Can it be just us today? Just us, like it was on Uzu. Can we go swimming, play outside, and just mess around? Just forget about everything else, just for today? If not, the whole day, for a few hours?"

I took a deep breath and nodded. "Let's go swimming, I have something I want to show you."

"Show me what?" Kushina demanded.

"You'll see."

"See what?"

"Come on," I took her hand and tugged her towards the door.

She followed, protesting half-heartedly.

I led her through the village, running at a civilian pace until we arrived at a small shop near the river that sold rope on the side. I used a little bit of money to purchase a rope as thick as my wrist, much to the confusion of the merchant, and pulled Kushina over to where a sturdy bridge spanned the river. In short order, I had it tied securely to one of the supporting beams. I pulled it over to where Kushina stood, confused.

"You want to go first?" I asked, holding out the rope to her.

"But what's it for?" She asked.

"I'll show you." I grabbed the end of the rope and jumped out over the water and swung halfway across the river and back, landing beside her. "Your turn."

"Just swinging?" She asked dubiously.

"Try it."

She took the rope and swung across, giggling and whooping. "That is surprisingly fun. How did you figure it out?" She asked as she swung several times and had to kick off the water with a bit of chakra to make it back to the bank.

I shrugged and grabbed the rope, swinging across the river and at the highest point, landing in the water. The river was extremely shallow by river standards. It was only about ten feet deep at its deepest and most boats could not make it from one side of the river to the other.

I pushed off the bottom of the river, only for Kushina to dive down and nearly collide with me. I resurfaced and only managed to get a gasp of air before Kushina tugged on my foot. I dove back down and peered at her through the murky water. She motioned for me to follow her. I swam after her as she dove towards the bottom of the river. The water was almost pitch black and had to use a little bit of chakra to keep the silt from damaging my eyes. If I hadn't had a solid lock on Kushina's position, I would have been startled when she grabbed my wrist and pressed several smooth river stones into my hands. She pulled me towards the surface, both of us weighed down by the rocks. Being ninja, it wasn't difficult to climb onto the bank to come face-to-face with several worried-looking civilians with chakra that felt strangely suppressed.

"You've been underwater for nearly three minutes!" One woman explained. She tried to grab Kushina's arm, but I pulled her behind me at the last second, the rocks tumbling into the shallows. I successfully directed the attention onto myself.

"Isn't he adorable for being so defensive of his sister!" One of the women practically crooned. My eyes darted around the women. Something was off. I was all for believing that a bunch of random civilian women would notice if two swimming kids didn't surface for a little too long, but there was no way that six women of varying professions and wealth would stop to talk once everything was determined to be fine. I let the old woman touch my shoulder, sending a miniscule burst of medical chakra into her hand. It took a ridiculous amount of concentration to pull off. The second I realized the technique wasn't working, I threw myself backwards, sending both Kushina and myself into the water and throwing a wave over our heads to douse the women and sweep the two of us back to the bottom of the river. As soon as my hands touched the bottom I pulled earth up to muddy the water as much as I possibly could and make sure they didn't jump in after me. Kushina held tight to the back of my waistband the entire time.

When I stilled, she pressed a hand into my back, demanding an explanation. I turned around and pressed the sign for shinobi into her stomach.

She punched me lightly in the shoulder and tried to swim towards the surface. I grabbed her wrist and demanded an explanation in return. She shoved the sign for ally into my stomach much harder than necessary before shooting to the surface. I barely managed to grab her ankle and pull her back down and retort with 'attack', to which she demanded an explanation.

I couldn't communicate what I needed, not without her being able to see the signs, and Kushina quickly caught onto that. She pressed the sign for trust into the middle of my chest and held it there until I relaxed my grip on her wrist and returned the earth to its original position.

She pulled me up to the surface and we both grabbed the rope so we didn't have to tread water. She didn't let go of my wrist. "Nii-san, calm down, we're in the middle of the village, we have to be able to trust the other citizens."

"The one resisted—"

"You're not in uniform, Nii-san. You don't have a mask or even a hitai-ate with you."

"But—" I interrupted. Kushina suddenly tightened her grip. A burst of chakra burned the back of my wrist and before I could react, I was slipping into unconsciousness.

I fought against it, but Kushina's Fūinjutsu was much stronger than Nagato's seals I practiced against.

* * *

 _Author's note:_ _Did you know: According to grammahPolice, only 0.2% of Naruto fanfictions reach over 1,000 reviews. If the rate of reviews for Spirit of the Triage remains at its current pace, there will be more than 950 reviews by the time I finish posting this story. My goal is 1,000 reviews by the time I post chapter 100. Just putting that out there. If you think this story deserves to be in the top 0.2% of Naruto fanfictions, leave a review!_


	62. Chapter 62

"Nagato, give him some breathing room, he's going to be extremely disoriented as soon as he wakes up." Minato said from my right.

"He's going to be so pissed at you, Kushina. You can't just knock him out like that."

"He used two jutsu in the middle of the village without provocation! I didn't have a choice. He's somewhat conscious now." Someone peeled back my eyelid and I caught a glimpse of Minato leaning over me.

"He's going to flip out if you don't take those restraints off before he notices them."

"But—"

"I can handle him."

"Nagato, he's—"

"I know what I'm doing okay? If done this plenty of times before."

"Nagato!"

"Look, if you don't want anyone to realize something's wrong, you have to let him go."

"Let him go? Are you crazy? He attacked—"

"He was wary of a bunch of kunoichi who tried to approach him out of nowhere as civilians. You can't expect him to allow something like that, especially not while you're with him."

"What do I have to do with anything?" Kushina demanded.

"You're his little sister, he's not going to put you at risk if he can avoid it."

"I am perfectly capable of taking care of myself!"

"Look where that almost landed you! If the ANBU hadn't shown up when they did, things could have gotten bad. Kami! They could have taken Kichiro! They almost managed it too!"

I tried to push myself upright, only to find I was lying on my stomach, my hands bound behind my back and my chakra unreachable.

I struggled to force down the involuntary panic.

"Let him go, Kushina, please!"

Kushina brushed my hair to the side and poked the back of my neck.

"Thank you," Nagato said scathingly as he untied the wire from around my wrists. I sat up and almost immediately started coughing from the dampness that rested in my lungs. "Look what you did!" Nagato accused.

"What I did?" Kushina shrieked back. "How is this my fault? I followed procedure!" I grabbed the front of Nagato's shirt to stop him from retorting.

"Enough!" I wheezed. "What happened?"

"This idiot knocked you out and inadvertently helped an unidentified team of six nearly capture you." Nagato snarled.

"How was I supposed to know—"

"Minato, the facts, please?" I interrupted.

"A team of six enemy operatives—"

"There were seven," I interrupted, glancing at Nagato to remember the number for the report I assumed we would be told to submit.

Minato kept going, ignoring the interruption, "They accosted you and Kushina by the river. You engaged in immediate evasive maneuvers, which you aborted for some reason, after which Kushina incapacitated you. By the time the enemy team managed to regroup after your initial attack, ANBU arrived on scene and the operatives fled."

"Were any of them captured?"

"No."

"Damn it. What did they want?"

"You, we think."

"Why?"

Nagato rolled his eyes. "Could be anything, they might want the Kyuubi, your Uzumaki genetics, old grudge, rabid fan, desperate dying old lady, who knows?"

I smacked Nagato on the back of the head. "Any specific reason we can deduce?"

"No," Minato responded.

"Why am I the one always knee-deep in this stuff?" I complained.

"That is a very interesting question, young man," the Hokage's voice came from the stairs. "It's starting to become—"

Ignoring the aftereffects of the Uzumaki-grade knockout seal, I shot to my feet and marched into the bathroom, slamming the door behind me. There was absolutely no reason whatsoever for the Sandaime to pay me a visit. I locked it, not that the lock was any more than a polite request for privacy, and turned on the shower as hot as it would go and sat down underneath the spray, fully clothed. A firm knock on the door resounded through the bathroom. I knew it was the Hokage and ignored it. The knocking didn't persist, but the sandals never moved away from the door, even after I shut the long-cold water off and my clothes dried.

My stomach growled loudly, but I sure as hell wasn't going to lose the standoff.

I passed most of the day meditating and attempting to have a civil conversation with the Kyuubi, but the lower the sun set, the stupider I felt, sitting propped in the corner of the bathroom wrapped in towels to keep the chill away.

It was just after dinnertime when I lost patience with the situation and jerked open the door. "What the hell do you want that you'll spend the entire day just standing there when you have a village at war to take care of?" I demanded.

The Hokage's eyes narrowed. "What kind of shinobi are you that you'll refuse to speak with your commander?"

"I'm talking to you now, aren't I?"

"And I am a shadow clone. Now, how did you know that enemy combatants were shinobi?"

"Anyone could have asked me that question, why you of all people?"

"Please, answer."

"One of them touched me, I tried to assess her chakra capacity and I couldn't, meaning she was attempting a jutsu on me. Now why are _you_ questioning me?"

The Hokage stared at me oddly and held out his hand. I stared at him, not understanding. "Your hand, please."

"Why?"

"I would like to look at the seal."

"Why?"

"You have no authority to question me, boy."

"I just did."

"Give me your hand."

"Tell me why."

He gritted his teeth. "If I tell you why, will you comply?"

"Whatever you want is either not important enough to warrant an order or whatever it is requires my willing compliance. If I were to bet, it would be on the latter. My compliance depends on your reason." I noticed one of the Uzumaki kids standing on the steps, almost entirely hidden by the wall. I was fairly certain it was Tamaki, the one who spent time as one of Orochimaru's captives, but I couldn't be sure with only a third of his face visible.

The Hokage was not happy with my response. After a long minute of contemplation, the Hokage responded. "When Uzumaki Mito sealed the Kyuubi inside of you, she expended a majority of her energy on that seal, and hardly any was put toward the Shitagau. beforehand, she mentioned that it would need to be strengthened five or six years after its placement. It's been seven and due to the minimal use, it has survived until now, but it needs to be strengthened, just like the seal for the Kyuubi will need to be strengthened in a few years."

I involuntarily took a step back, running into the door. "Let it break—" I croaked.

"I can't allow that, Kichiro."

Feinting towards the door, I tried to run, not that I thought it would be very successful, and dashed towards the window. Before I made it halfway, the Hokage grabbed my arm, twisting it behind me hard enough to damage the tendons in my wrist. At the same time, most of his weight landed on my shoulders. The Hokage wasn't a large man, in fact, he was on the smaller side of shinobi, but he still had almost a hundred pounds and five inches of pure muscle and experience on me. His hand closed around my neck, effectively pinning me to the ground.

"Let him go!" Tamaki screeched from the stairs, dashing forward. I couldn't see anything, I only felt the Hokage release my arm for the briefest of moments.

"No!" I cried, but I already heard the wet sound of a kunai in flesh. A heartbeat later, Tamaki hit the ground. I listened for three seconds, horrified, until I heard a gurgling breath. "You hurt him!" I accused, struggling fruitlessly. "He'll die if you don't let me help him!"

"What would I get out of it?"

It took me a long time to process the coldness of that statement. "A child's life is on the line!" I snarled.

"The boy is sterile after what Orochimaru did to him. He's of no use to me. Also, he furthered the experiments of a traitor, no matter how unwillingly."

I couldn't entirely believe what I was hearing. Finally, I forced a threat out of my throat. "If you let him die, I swear I will fight the Shitagau until it kills me." It was a gamble. I wasn't sure how much the Sandaime valued my medical prowess and control over the Kyuubi, but it was the worst threat I could think of.

Slowly, the Sandaime released my neck and my arm. The second I was free, I dashed over to where Tamaki lay silently crying and desperately trying not to move. The kunai was embedded in his right lung, all the way up to the handle and slowly collapsing it. It didn't take long for me to dull the pain and reverse the damage as I pulled out the blade. As soon as I finished, I looked up. The Hokage crouched beside me.

I couldn't deny that even after all the bravado on my part, I knew I didn't have the resolve to follow through with that threat. I'd felt the effects of the Shitagau before and it was a pain that was all-encompassing. The longer I went without feeling it, the more I feared that pain. I may have refused to admit that the Sandaime had any control over me, but I knew he held all the cards.

"You can't escape this, boy. While I may not be able to strengthen the seal while you're unwilling, I don't need your permission either. The second you lose willpower, or even fall asleep, I'm free to do as I wish. Understand?"

I glared at him. It wasn't until Tamaki let out a small squeak that I realized I was clutching his wrist hard enough to potentially fracture his bones. Instantly, I released him, but he didn't move from his place on the floor until I managed to control my anger, and, by extension, my chakra. As soon as I regained control of myself, the boy twisted away and dashed out of the room.

Footsteps pounded up the stairs. Just before they entered the room, the Hokage gave his parting shot. "Don't forget that."

His statement put me over the edge. The next thing I knew, I was lunging towards him. I swung at his face, but a split second before I made contact, he vanished into smoke, only to be replaced by child-sized hands restraining me and my chakra being forcibly sealed off.

Going from leaking chakra like a overfilled sponge to having it all locked in a seal too small for it was not pleasant. For a minute, my entire body spasmed painfully before I fell limp. "I told you I shouldn't have taken the seals off!" Kushina snapped as they lowered me to my knees. "What the hell is setting him off? Is he under a Genjutsu or something?"

I coughed violently, trying to adjust to my abruptly sealed chakra. While I was bent over, someone lifted the back of my shirt and pressed a slip pf paper onto the middle of my back. I tried to twist away from yet another seal being place on me against my will, but my muscles weren't quite responding properly yet. The newest seal completely disrupted my entire chakra system. I screamed.

"What the hell is going on up here?" A man demanded angrily. "What happened?"

"You shouldn't be up here, Ji-chan." Minato answered.

"Why does Tamaki have blood all over his shirt?"

"Something happened and Kichiro healed him, that's all we know. You really shouldn't be up here; we don't want you to accidentally get hurt too." While Minato was talking, I forced my heart rate to slow down and my muscles to relax, one at a time, while Kushina shielded me from view and Nagato knelt beside me, running the basic diagnosis I taught him and helping settle my chakra through minor, easily broken Genjutsu.

"Minato—"

"Please, go, you can't help anyone here. Go take care of Tamaki, you can help him."

"Is someone in trouble?" Takeshi asked sharply.

"We don't know yet, okay, please, just go."

"Nagato! What are you doing?" Kushina shrieked as she turned around. "You're not a medic."

"Maybe not, but I've lived with one for long enough. Don't worry, Kichiro himself taught me the basics, for situations just like this."

"Then you know how much chakra control—"

"Just shut up and let me work, okay?"

With Nagato's help, I was up less than a minute later.

"Take the seals off, Kushina," I ordered, my voice hoarse and strained.

Warily, she complied.

I looked up at her, rubbing my neck. "I know you know better, Kushina, but I'll tell you again: do not put seals on me against my will, especially when you don't know what's going on." My final sentence came out crueler than I intended. "I've had enough seals forced on me to last the rest of my life, I don't need yours added to that."

Her face went white and the extent of what I said hit me as the last word tumbled out.

"I'm sorry, Kushina, I didn't mean—"

"No," she snapped. "You're absolutely right. Thank you for not mincing words."

Before I could say anything, she dashed out of the room. I couldn't even figure out which direction she left. I glanced at Nagato hopefully, but he shook his head. "Damn it. Minato, which way—"

"Don't go after her, she deserved it and she knows it."

"It doesn't mean I should have said it."

"No, you scolded Nagato for the exact same thing, years ago, and she should have listened."

"Don't excuse—"

"Kichiro, please, just trust me on this."

I studied him for a long moment. "It doesn't make it right—"

"Just trust me," Minato repeated.

"Look me in the eye and say that."

Minato met my gaze evenly. "Kushina deserved what you said. She needed to hear it, she knows it, I know it. Trust me, please."

I sat down and crossed my legs as Nagato relaxed against my back, nursing a headache from trying to heal.

"She feels replaced, you know that, right?" Minato commented, nodding towards Nagato.

"I don't understand," I responded, rubbing the back of my neck to stave off the impending bodily ache from having my chakra sealed. While sealing chakra usually wasn't dangerous to a ninja, I had so much more than average that, depending how strong the seal was and how unprepared it caught me, it ended up painful at the very least. At worst, it would cause damage to my chakra coils. The damage would be repairable this time.

"She's not going to be happy I told you this."

"Then don't tell me."

"It's not fair to you not to."

I didn't respond to that, instead, turning to Nagato and laying him on the ground beside me, doing what I could to ease the pain, not that there was anything I could do besides making him as comfortable as I could, at least, not without giving myself an awful headache.

"Obviously, you've spent more time with Nagato than anyone else over the past three years."

"It's almost exclusively missions and training, but yes."

"He's already proven himself to be better than Kushina at most things."

"He's had superior training, as well as a much for focused regime with fewer interruptions."

"You know more about Nagato than you do about Kushina."

"I've only seen Kushina in passing over the past three years, and she never recognized me in uniform, if she even saw me. It only makes sense—"

"She's getting left behind, Kichiro."

"I don't understand."

"You saw her struggling in that spar. Nagato is better than her in Taijutsu, and it only makes sense that you're better than him, and that's before using blades or anything lethal. You're a medic, you've had a reputation in the village practically since day one. I'm a genius, I out-stripped her in almost everything years ago. The only thing she can truly claim to be 'good' at in comparison to us is Fūinjutsu, and even then, in comparison to what the Uzumaki clan used to be, she's barely above average. She'd be better with a proper teacher, but no one can spare the time and no one has the same specialty."

"Considering the circumstances—"

"Considering the circumstances, you should be long dead. Considering the circumstances, Nagato should be fearing for his life in Ame. I should be curled up in some alley, starving to death. She's riding on our highs and she hates it."

"That's not true. She's—"

"It is true. Since she's graduated from the Academy, she's been routinely shoved aside in favor of me or you. Ever since our Genin teammate died, Jiraiya-sensei has focused more on me, only teaching her when I struggle to help her learn the lesson and she won't let me confront him about it. While you might have seen taking her place as Jinchuuriki a noble sacrifice, she agreed with you for a long time, but now, even though she won't admit it, you took away her best chance to stand out and get the attention she wants."

"I didn't—"

"She told you about her opportunity in ANBU, but she didn't tell you the real reason she didn't join. She didn't join because you were there first. I don't know who let it slip, or how she found out, but she knew she would be placed next to you if she joined ANBU and she didn't want to be compared like that, especially when it would separate you and Nagato."

I frowned. "It wouldn't have separated anyone—"

"Trust me, the Hokage doesn't want another shinobi with your disregard for authority running around, but he's getting one with Nagato."

"Nagato doesn't—"

Minato rolled his eyes. "When you're around, he's a perfect little soldier, but when you're not, he's a little hellion."

I glanced at Nagato, frowning. "You know, that isn't the first time I've heard about that."

"They're exaggerating," Nagato defended himself, grinning with a cockiness that put most shinobi on edge. "It's not like I'm causing any damage."

I looked back to Minato, accepting the answer.

"You're just willfully blind." Minato rolled his eyes. "My point is that Kushina's your younger sister now, not your baby sister."

Frowning, I waited patiently for Minato to continue.

"Of your little family, she was always the baby, and now the family has grown and that's not the case anymore. She used to have all of your attention whenever she wanted, and now she's no longer so overwhelmed with shinobi life, she can start to wish she had your undivided attention, something that hasn't happened since you both became shinobi, either because of me or outside factors. To have your attention, which used to be on her, redirected to Nagato, and him being superior to her in almost every way, even if it's not by much, hurts more than she wants to admit."

The grin slid off Nagato's face. "So it's—"

"It's not your fault, Nagato. It's no one's fault, it's just a bad situation," Minato assured while I rubbed my temples in frustration. "It doesn't help at all that you have a team now."

"They're not a team. They're just a bunch of kids I'm supposed to teach. The only reason they're in ANBU to be taught in the first place is because the Hokage wants me to stay in the village, and three not-yet-Genin students and a Genin student are three more students than any other active Jōnin—how did you know about them?"

"Nagato isn't a Chuunin yet?" Minato asked, confused and ignoring my question.

"There aren't standard promotions in ANBU. There are students, agents, and captains. I'm technically on almost-equal standing with a captain, but have more authority because I'm a medic. Nagato is an agent. By regular standards, he would be Tokubetsu Jōnin. I would be low-Jōnin level."

"I see. Anyways, Sakumo-sensei is downstairs and he brought Kakashi with him."

"What does he want?"

"You do realize that he hasn't had a real conversation with you in years, right?"

"Oh." I checked to make sure Sakumo was downstairs.

"Yeah. ANBU hurt your social skills. You should go talk to him before the kids find him."

I nodded and stood up, slightly unnerved that Minato had a better grip on everything than I did. Nagato started to follow me but Minato caught his arm. Before I stepped out of the room, I looked back at Minato. He had grown up; I could see it. When he looked up and met my gaze evenly, like an equal, I smiled.

"I'm proud of you, Minato." I turned and left before he could respond.


	63. Chapter 63 - Part 10

Sakumo was just opening the front door as I reached the bottom of the stairs.

"You look better, Kichiro," he stated, bending slightly to look me in the eye. "ANBU might not be the best choice for you but it's not a bad one either."

I couldn't keep the wide smile off my face. It had been almost three years since I last spoke to him. It wasn't until I saw him, Kakashi bashfully trailing behind him, that I realized how much I missed him.

"Sensei!"

The moment I was within reach, he pulled me into a crushing hug. I didn't resist.

Subtly, he steered me outside, nudged Kakashi into the room where Natsuki was playing, and we walked the perimeter of the property. Mostly, it was Sakumo talking about Kakashi, I didn't have to say much and I suspected he had kept close tabs on me, since he only asked a handful of questions about how I was doing.

Whenever we passed the west side of the house, Kakashi's white tousled head popped up over the edge of the window, occasionally shadowed by a bright redhead. Several hours later, we returned inside and Sakumo left with Nagato to run his shift on patrol, though it was a separate route than Nagato. I watched the two three-year-olds. Kakashi was very indignant when I confiscated his wooden ninja weapons and I patiently waited for him to figure out that the 'no ninja stuff in the house' rule only applied inside the house.

The next few months passed excruciatingly slowly. Apparently, since I was now staying in one place and my chances of being called on a mission were extremely slim, Sakumo regularly dropped Kakashi off with me during his patrols, rather than leave him at the daycare he previously used. On one occasion, I took him for almost three weeks when Sakumo was called out on an emergency mission. Kakashi never did figure out that I would allow almost anything as long as he played outside, which relieved Sakumo more than I expected. It turned out Sakumo was more worried than he let on that Kakashi would be drawn into the shinobi life sooner than he deserved. At the same time, Sakumo knew Kakashi would be entering the shinobi life far sooner than he should. Kakashi wasn't half-bad at ducking behind my back and trying to practice throwing his wooden kunai at the walls. It didn't take long for both him and Natsuki to turn it into a game, especially since I was the only one who enforced the rule and they knew it. I was good enough that the kunai barely ever left their hands before I confiscated the toy for the day. I let them wrestle outside all they wanted, and somehow, Kakashi always managed to get his wooden kunai taken away before he went outside, where I would have let the two of them play with them. I would have given them back if he only asked, but he never did.

During the day, most, if not all, of the adults worked. Instead of schooling the rest of the kids at home, I covertly placed seals that would alert me if a stranger entered the school's property. After my first week back, Minato and Kushina left on a deployment to maintain the Kiri border. While Nagato came home every night, from sunrise to sunset he ran patrols and day-long missions. That left me taking care of children for most of the day. I spent a few hours every day building foundational ninja skills in Natsuki and Kakashi, such as balance, general coordination, and passive chakra control—but only when they asked for ninja lessons. The civilian kids went to school six days a week, and each of the adults took one day off a week, which was normally on the same day the civilian kids were off school.

While Natsuki and Kakashi napped or were sufficiently occupied otherwise, I trained, careful to make sure they couldn't see and attempt to copy me. Once, sometimes twice a week, whenever there was an adult available to watch the children, I returned to ANBU to treat injured members and perform checkups on the more stubborn individuals. Each time, it left me utterly exhausted. Sometimes, I would be healing near-constantly for over twenty-four hours, leaving me barely able to get home. Once I gave up and just slept in my room at headquarters. I only did that once, and was woken after three hours by my students, who thought something was horribly wrong when I decided not to react when they tried to shake me awake. In their panic, they somehow got Kagami running in, terrified something was wrong. I went home as soon as things were straightened out.

It took six months before Genma, Red, and Blondie were up to a point academically that they needed more focused attention than a menagerie of tutors could get them. Shortly before, the Oshiro clan backed off. I asked Kagami what happened but he refused to answer and I wasn't curious enough to pursue the issue. At that point, I was pulled back into ANBU full-time to train the kids. Barely a month later, the war ended. From that point on, I healed agents as they came in, which often interrupted training sessions with my students, but they quickly learned to carry on whenever an injured, and often masked, agent stumbled onto the training field, and Genma quickly learned how to go back to sleep after being woken up in the middle of the night. With the end of the war and the subsequent relaxed standards and rules, I went home once or twice a week. Nagato spent most nights at home, even managing to get back soon enough to eat dinner some nights.

Three weeks after the end of the war, I was walking through one of the Academy katas with my students when Kagami entered the training ground and stood there watching. When the kids started stealing glances at him instead of concentrating, I set them to running laps around the training ground and went to talk to him.

"What's going on?" I asked neutrally. "You don't normally interrupt training."

"The Hokage wants you to accompany him to finalize the treaty with Iwa."

"Why?" I scowled.

Kagami seemed taken aback by my answer and studied me carefully.

"Do I have something on my face?"

"No, I just expected you to flat out refuse a trip with the Hokage."

"I'm not immature enough that I can't tolerate his presence."

"Your last meeting with him says otherwise."

"He came to my house without invitation."

"He doesn't need—"

"Enough. Why does the Hokage want me present at the signing of the treaty? The Tsuchikage hates me, it'll only cause problems."

Kagami shifted, an odd expression on his face. "The Tsuchikage requested your presence. He wishes to speak with you. Just talk, I promise."

"Why does he want to talk?"

"He wants to ask you a question. Apparently, it has to be face-to-face."

"Fine, what about my students?"

"It's your choice. Since it won't be considered a mission for you, you can bring them and give them some experience travelling, or leave them here, I'll have Sakumo cover for you, my daughter can watch Kakashi during the day."

"And Nagato?"

"Look, Kichiro, almost anything you want, the Hokage will find some way to get you it. The Tsuchikage let the Hokage decide everything when it comes to the finalization of the treaty and only asked for one thing: to ask you a question. He's going to damn well make sure to grant the Tsuchikage something that simple, he wants this peace more than anyone else."

"Fine, I'll go."

"No conditions?" Kagami asked, surprised.

"Contrary to popular belief, I do not cause problems just because I can. You know this."

Kagami nodded. "Come to my office in one hour." He didn't wait for my response before leaving.

I spent the next forty-five minutes creating and explaining a training plan for the kids to follow in my absence. The next five were spent packing the bare necessities for the trip and ten were spent scribbling a note and dropping it on the Uzumaki dining table. I made it to Kagami's office precisely on time and entered without knocking.

Kagami and the Hokage were sitting across from each other, Kagami working on paperwork and the Hokage reading a book. I sat down in the empty chair without invitation, waiting for someone else to speak first. I looked at the ceiling while the Hokage, dressed in full battle gear, studied me neutrally, the book forgotten.

I was not going to be the one to speak first, no matter how uncomfortable the Hokage's stare made me.

Finally, Kagami broke the silence. "Are the two of you done being stubborn?"

I shrugged.

"The Tsuchikage and I have agreed to meet at the Kannabi bridge in seven days, with one companion each." The Hokage stated.

I turned sharply to look at him, my neck cracking at the motion.

"Even though he implied that you were not a part of that agreement, I will abide by the spirit of it and you will be my only companion, Kichiro."

I gritted my teeth and nodded.

"If you have a problem with that, speak now."

I shook my head

I resolutely held eye contact with him. It wasn't until Kagami cleared his throat that I looked away.

"Kichiro, are you ready to leave?" he asked.

I nodded once.

"Then we can leave at once," the Hokage concluded, standing up. Kagami and I mimicked him. I secured my bag and marched out after the Hokage, who carried nothing, to my interest. Kagami didn't follow us to the gate, and in the time it took me to glance back and notice the fact, I nearly lost track of the Hokage as he went into 'stealth mode' the second he left headquarters and hurried towards the main gate.

I pulled my mask over my face and rushed after him. I had my Chuunin uniform in my bag if necessary, but I had come to prefer the nondescript ANBU gear. It deterred attackers far more efficiently than average ninja gear, which sometimes provoked attack, but that might have been because of my identity.

The Hokage slipped out of the village with no one the wiser, but I was stopped at the gate. He waited a kilometer down the road while I gave the special assignment code to the bored Jōnin manning the gate.

"You have too much chakra for the standard stealth techniques to work, at least, they won't work on anyone competent, no matter how good your control is," the Hokage commented. "Instead, you have to relax your chakra to the point where it blends into your surroundings."

I had no idea how to respond to it, but thankfully, he didn't give me the chance to. He jumped up into the trees, setting brisk Genin pace on the longest route to the Kannabi bridge. To occupy myself, I tried out the Hokage's tip. He glanced back a few times when I lost control, frustrated, but didn't say anything.

It was about noon when we left and the Hokage kept moving until a half-hour past sunset, when he veered off sharply and I overshot the turn and had to backtrack ten meters before catching up to the place the Hokage chose as the campsite. I hopped up to one of the thicker trees and wedged myself into a comfortable position, a cloak around my shoulders.

I flinched as the Hokage landed on the branch in front of me.

"What are you doing?" He asked, frowning.

I shrugged.

"No fire?"

I pulled off my mask and looked at him oddly.

The Hokage nodded to himself. "We're not at war anymore, Kichiro."

I shrugged again.

"You go hunt something down, but stay within range. I'll build a fire."

I frowned at him, but he was already gathering wood. I left my stuff behind. It didn't take long for me to find a rabbit. A quick senbon through the back of its head and I was headed back with a meal, the medium-sized rabbit dangling at my side.

"A clean kill," he commented. It was enough for two shinobi, with a little left over for morning.

Before I could sit down and start to skin and prepare it, the Hokage held out his hand. I gave it to him, and with quick, practiced movements, he skinned and gutted the animal faster than I ever could have. I sat down opposite him, far enough away from the fire that I barely felt the heat. The Hokage stuck the rabbit on a spit. I sat there with my chin on my knees, watching the meat cook in silence. I was extremely glad the silence didn't bother me, even if it was a bit awkward. I didn't miss how the Hokage finished preparing the meal and gave me half of it, in my bowl, which I was positive I left buried in my bag. I knew he was baiting me, so I didn't say anything.

"Interesting read." He tossed me one of the scrolls I kept at the bottom of my bag, mostly filled with extra medical supplies and some ration bars.

It was still sealed, with no sign of tampering. I held it up so he could see the label, which read 'medical supplies.'

"You haven't said a single word to me since you walked into Kagami's office." My silence was bothering him. The thought made the corner of my mouth twitch up.

I conveniently had my mouth full with the last bite of the meal. He wasn't finished and couldn't follow me as I stood up and left to clean my bowl. By the time he finished, I was already settled down in the tree and feigning sleep.

He sighed and set up basic perimeter alarms. I fell asleep before he finished.

(-_-)

In the middle of the night, he patted my dangling foot to wake me up. "Your watch until morning."

I nodded once and packed up my stuff before donning my mask and settling just inside the dying light of the fire. The Hokage laid down on his own bedroll. I crouched on my toes and closed my eyes, spreading out my senses.

I settled into the trance-like state to keep watch. I didn't move for the rest of the night, chakra easing the stiffness and pain associated with holding still for so long and balancing on my toes.

The Hokage woke shortly before dawn. I signed the all-clear to him before working on destroying any evidence we were there.

He buried the fire with an earth jutsu. "Kichiro?"

I turned towards him.

Whatever he was going to say, he decided against it and shook his head.

After finishing clearing the campsite, we took off. I ate a ration bar as we went, blocking the dull taste from my mind.

To my surprise, around lunchtime he suddenly veered off course. I followed. It wasn't until we were right on top of the problem that I realized what was going on. A gang of bandits had accosted a civilian town.

The Hokage landed at the gate of the town. I flanked him.

"Is there a problem here?" He asked, his voice carrying through the entire town.

"And what's a wannabe little man like you and your child lacky gonna do about it?" One of the bandits marched up, far too cocky for his own good.

The Hokage raised an eyebrow. Since he wasn't in a Konoha uniform, I didn't expect them to recognize him at first glance, but everyone knew the danger of a masked shinobi.

"That's what I thought," the bandit sneered. I barely managed to grab the Hokage's wrist and stop him from killing the man.

"If you kill him in cold blood, you're no better than he is," I rasped. My voice sounded odd after so long without speaking. "He doesn't even pose a threat, let the village punish him under their laws."

The Hokage wrenched himself free. Faster than I could see, the bandit was bound hand and foot, lying unconscious in the center of the road. The Hokage's hand shot past my ear. I didn't even have a chance to flinch. A cold, sharp point pressed against the base of my skull. He pulled his hand away and showed me a small arrow that nearly killed me.

"Are you still going to defend them?"

I spun around, deflecting the second shot into the ground at my feet and flinging a single senbon at him. It severed the string of his bow, causing it to snap and hit the man in the eye, even as the senbon stopped in his shoulder. He howled in pain, clutching his eye, but the sedative on the senbon quickly relaxed him, though not enough to knock him unconscious, even if he did end up slumped on the ground.

I jumped straight up and swung myself up on top of the simple wall, flinging the senbon at any bandit I saw. When their comrades finally noticed something was going wrong, they rushed out into the street. I caught them one at a time, half of them didn't even realize they'd been hit before they collapsed.

The last bandit proved to be more of a problem. He knocked away my senbon before it could pierce his arm. "Who are you, little ninja?" he sneered.

I didn't respond. Instead, I dropped to the ground and put one hand on the earth. Before he noticed what I was doing, I encased his feet, up to his knees, in stone. He cursed and tried to break free, but my chakra in the stone was much stronger than him. He swore violently, cursing me until I took advantage of his distraction to hit him in the thigh with a senbon. I released him from the stone and he slumped to the ground, mumbling incoherently.

I turned my back on the village and waited while the Hokage helped tie up the bandits and talked to the head of the village. A group of children gradually gathered, watching me and murmuring among themselves.

An hour of hissed argument among them later, one of the younger girls, who was about thirteen, was bullied into approaching me. I ignored her as she tugged on my sleeve.

"What are you?" She squeaked.

"A shinobi," I answered shortly, without visibly moving.

"What's that?"

"A killer."

"But you didn't kill anyone, old lady Junko said so."

I ignored her.

"Are you a person?"

"No."

"But only people can talk."

I didn't answer that.

"How old are you?"

"I don't have an age."

"Everything has an age."

No answer.

"What's your name?"

"I am called Fox."

"That's not your real name. My name is Ayayka. What's your real name?"

"I have no real name."

She tightened her grip on my shirt. I grabbed her wrists until she let go and pushed her away. "Everyone has a real name. Would your answers be different if you didn't have that mask on?"

"Yes."

"Then why are you answering my questions?"

"Because I'm not working."

"Why can't you take the mask off?"

"Do you know who I am?"

"Not exactly, but am I able to guess?"

"I don't know how much small-town civilians know about me."

"Can I tell you a secret?"

I just looked down at her neutrally.

She motioned me down towards her. I didn't move. She took a step closer and stood on tiptoe, her hands cupped around her mouth. I leaned down slightly. "I'm going to kill you," she simpered. I almost didn't recognize the words. Luckily, my reflexes from ANBU were honed enough that I caught the blade before she could plunge it between my ribs.

In an instant, I kicked her legs out from underneath her and prostrated her on the ground. Glass cracked under my fingers as my grip tightened on the blade, the shards biting into my unprotected fingers and a thick syrupy liquid spreading across my hands.

"You killed my mother!" She snarled at me. I put a knee on her back, effectively pinning her and examined my hand. It only took a few seconds to extract the poison and heal the damage. The Hokage crouched on the girl's other side, examining her dispassionately.

"She's a sleeper agent, placed here on the off-chance she could catch a shinobi by surprise." The Hokage explained in monotone, ignoring the girl's angry screeching and futile struggling.

I nodded.

"No, the assault wasn't supposed to kill you, though the poison was an interesting touch. She is most certainly a civilian, she doesn't have a chance at killing anyone but a rookie Genin. Your retaliation was supposed to kill her." He grabbed her thrashing arm and showed me the inside of her wrist. "Her death sets off the dead-man's seal here. It would have annihilated this entire town and the number of shinobi capable of escaping something of that caliber are few. If caught unawares, I probably would not have escaped."

I touched the back of the girl's neck, knocking her out while the Hokage pushed up her sleeve, looking at the seal.

"I need you to remove her arm, just above the elbow. I'll put the seal in a storage scroll and destroy it, problem solved."

I sent him a doubtful look but followed orders anyways. Three minutes later, I amputated the girl's arm and the Hokage swiftly sealed it away then destroyed the scroll with a fire jutsu. I woke the girl and quickly backed away. While the Hokage smoothed everything over, I crouched atop the wall, a minor Genjutsu encouraging the civilians not to look at me.

I very deliberately ignored the fallout. Eventually, the Hokage scaled the wall and landed beside me. "It's time to go." I followed him as he took off at Chuunin speed.

Four days later, we reached the bridge. I didn't attend the negotiations. I camped five miles south of the bridge. I stayed at the campsite alone for five days before the Hokage came to retrieve me.

He landed in the clearing while I was in the middle of practicing my katas. For a few minutes, he just watched me train.

"You turn your toe in when you kick," he commented.

I grunted but didn't stop.

Without warning, the Hokage landed in front of me and tried to take advantage of the supposed mistake. He swept his leg at my ankle from behind, but I rolled with the strike, using the extra momentum to twist into a cartwheel and then flipped into a back handspring to make space, nearly kicking him in the face in the process.

"Good job, let's see how you stack up, Taijutsu only."

I turned my back on him and marched over to where I left my bag and started to pack it up. The Hokage caught my wrist as I started to stuff my cloak inside of it.

"What are you doing?"

I wrenched my hand free and continued.

"Talk to me, Kichiro."

"I have nothing to say to you." I pointedly turned my back on him.

"Kichiro—"

I spun back towards him. "You said the Tsuchikage wanted to ask me something. Well?"

"He rescinded his request."

"That was anticlimactic." I snatched up my bag and started to head back towards Konoha. The Hokage stepped into my path.

"I want to talk to you, Kichiro."

I took a step back and crossed my arms.

"I'm sick of this hostility."

I scowled.

"Kichiro—" he tried to put a hand on my shoulder but I jerked back.

I didn't trust my voice to stay even, so I clamped my mouth shut and jerked off my gloves followed by my hitai-ate, and threw them at his feet, holding out my hands so he could see the seals on my palms. As fast as I was able, I curled my right hand into a fist and swung it at his jaw. The seal burned as he caught my fist. I strained against him until steam started to rise from the burning seals and blood dripped down my forehead, then jerked away, went around him, and continued to march back towards Konoha.

* * *

 _Author's note: HAPPY BIRTHDAY, KICHIRO! Today is June 7th, Kichiro's birthday, for those who didn't get the memo last year_ — _oh, wow, I've been updating this for over a year now!_


	64. Chapter 64

The trip back was in total silence. The Hokage was welcomed back at the gates as a hero. I slid in through the ANBU entrance, invisible.

Once everything was settled, the losses from the war were tallied. When almost all shinobi had been accounted for, the death toll from the war ended up at around a quarter of the entire shinobi population, or almost a third of the active shinobi corps, including ANBU. The losses were much lighter than expected, mostly due to the combat medics. Unfortunately, combat medics suffered heavier losses than any other group of shinobi, including ANBU. The combat medic corps was at half its pre-war size. Ninety-nine percent of the active shinobi had been injured in combat. Due to the medics, eighty percent of those shinobi returned to active duty before, or shortly after, the end of the war. The remaining twenty percent were either permanently crippled or had more than a year of recovery before they could return to active duty. Most of those were put into forced retirement.

The ANBU death toll was around forty percent. The Genin promotion rate was at forty percent and the death toll was at ten percent, the lowest of all groups, though they had the highest number of forced retirees. The Chuunin death toll was at thirty percent and the promotion rate was barely at ten percent. The Jōnin death toll was around twenty percent.

Over the next year, I spent one day a week working in the hospital or healing inside if ANBU. Most of that time was spent in the hospital. The Hokage hesitated to forcibly retire a shinobi until his wife, me, Tsunade, or the Inuzuka determined the shinobi could not return to active duty. Every Sunday, I went home and spent the day babysitting Natsuki and Kakashi. The rest of my time was spent teaching Genma and the two girls or training with Nagato. All three of them picked up slacklining faster than Nagato and I never missed an opportunity to tease him for his horrible balance.

Once the war was over, it didn't take Nagato long to start chafing against being stuck in the village with me. I never took any initiative to take missions outside of the village, which bothered him more than he cared to admit. I offered to put him on a more active team, but he refused.

With twice the attention Nagato received and a near-suicidal drive to train, Genma advanced at the same pace as Nagato did originally, which was frankly remarkable, especially considering he wasn't a genius like Nagato. He still could barely read and his academics were on a kindergarten level, but he could hold his own in a spar and even managed to beat one of Nagato's speed records when he was the same age, even though it was almost four months before he could duplicate the feat.

By the end of the year, Nagato had indisputably mastered Taijutsu and managed to beat me fair and square in a spar. In all honesty, he was in control of the fight the entire time, no matter what I threw at him. Considering his balance was still questionable for a shinobi of his caliber, it was a remarkable feat.

The girls were a different story. They consistently sabotaged each other's progress to the point where they barely showed enough improvement to remain in the program.

During the next eight months, I almost exclusively trained them, Nagato, Genma, and myself. When Genma passed the test to become a full-fledged agent, albeit by the skin of his teeth, I dropped the girls from the program and sent them to the Academy. They did not adjust at all to ANBU life and were incapable of the emotional control needed to ever be successful in the program. Genma was closer to the minimum requirements than Nagato and I had been, but it was impressive nonetheless and only cast a darker shadow on the two girls.

The next two years were spent taking as many missions as Genma could handle, I had no more excuses to stay in the village. My skill in elemental Ninjutsu was greater than any other shinobi in the village, save a handful of Uchiha and the Sandaime. My seal-less mastery of wind, lightning, and earth, alongside chakra reserves that far outstripped the best shinobi in the village and chakra control surpassed only by Tsunade and the Inuzuka medic made me one of the strongest shinobi in the village by the time I turned seventeen.

Shortly before my seventeenth birthday, Nagato, Genma and I were officially transferred into the general shinobi corps, although my transfer was only for show. I was still the ANBU medic and ran missions that were too difficult or dangerous for the general shinobi corps or too trivial for ANBU corps. Genma was a solid Chuunin and after the first month, joined a different team that complemented his abilities better. Nagato easily made Jōnin alongside me. While Nagato couldn't seem to master Ninjutsu without hand seals, he was almost as good as I was, and his reserves were greater than most shinobi twice his age. In comparison to Nagato and I, Genma wasn't cut out to be a Ninjutsu fighter, and the gap in our chakra reserves widened exponentially over the years, slowly disenfranchising him to the branch of combat he just couldn't keep up in. He never mastered anything without hand seals, and it was one of the primary reasons he was so quick to switch teams. Like Nagato, he was far ahead of the curve in comparison to his peers, not that he realized it while always trying to keep up with and equal shinobi older than himself.

When I was thirteen, I arrived at the sudden realization that I could accomplish twice as much with Kage Bunshin. Unfortunately, my dream of learning everything in the library through Kage Bunshin was smashed to pieces the day after I learned the jutsu. I made three clones, sending them to the library to work, but at the end of the day, when they dispelled, the memories hit me at the equivalent of running top speed into a boulder. My inexplicable collapse in the middle of the cafeteria was not a pleasant experience for the ANBU division. The backlash from the memories not only destroyed the memories themselves, but most of my memories from the day. It probably would have been better for me to run full-tilt into a boulder. Nagato quickly figured out the problem just after the news of my unexplained collapse made it to the Hokage. It didn't save me from getting chewed out over the uncharacteristic risk by Sakumo, Kagami, the Hokage, Nagato, and several senior ANBU. After that, I experimented until I found out I could handle a single Kage Bunshin for half the day, but any more left me at risk of passing out and ensured a splitting headache. I never tried to push my limits on how many I could create for a short period of time.

After several misadventures, I gave up on the idea of using and abusing Kage Bunshin.

Shortly after Nagato's twelfth birthday, we were at the point where we couldn't seriously train with Ninjutsu inside the village walls. Even if we sealed off the training ground it was too much of a risk. Once every few weeks, we snuck out of the village to train our serious Ninjutsu. We got in trouble for it several times, unrepentantly sentenced to D-ranks, but only because Hokage repeatedly denied our requests to train outside the village. I wouldn't have bothered expanding my repertoire as much as I did if it wasn't for Nagato's pressure and the fact I couldn't let him go off and cause trouble by himself. Once or twice, Minato and Kushina joined us, but they didn't have Ninjutsu of our caliber to sling around. Shortly after Minato's seventeenth birthday, Nagato and I faced off in a spar against Minato and Kushina, outside of the village of course.

While I would be the first to admit that Minato was faster than both Nagato and myself, and Kushina was physically stronger unless I was augmenting my strength with chakra, the gap was barely enough to give them an edge. Nagato was better than them in Taijutsu and I was significantly better at Ninjutsu.

Nagato and I only won because we had more chakra than them, in fact, I had more than twice as much chakra as all three combined. Even if we didn't have a strong enough offense to take them down, they couldn't make it through our defense and had no choice but to exhaust themselves trying.

Between my eighteenth birthday and Kushina's seventeenth birthday, I finally managed to get permission from the Hokage and Kagami to see what I could do with the Kyuubi. Several Uchiha, Kagami, and all the village's shinobi seal masters, which was only the Hokage, Nagato, Jiraiya, Kushina, and Minato, were there as a precaution. I knew Sakumo was supposed to be there, but he was conspicuously absent. Once a powerful barrier had been set up around Minato and I, I transformed and fought him. At first, I wasn't entirely sure why Minato was chosen to be my opponent, but when I had nearly beaten him, he appeared outside the barrier in a bright flash of yellow. He had mastered the Hiraishin without telling me and as such was the only person who could have escaped if I truly lost control.

When I finished reversing the transformation and the barrier was removed, the Hokage promptly forbid me from ever transforming again unless it was a last resort. Minato and Kushina led the trek back to the village while Nagato and I, grim-faced, took up the rear.

Just after my eighteenth birthday, I sparred with Sakumo. With plenty of time to train from being stuck inside the village with Kakashi, Sakumo was one of the strongest shinobi in the village, even if his international reputation was fading. To my surprise, if not Sakumo's, I beat him. It was a questionable win, a glancing blow off his side from one of my blunted sparring kunai, which would have gutted him with a sharpened weapon, but I still won, and Sakumo admitted it.

Throughout that entire time, I avoided the Hokage as much as I possibly could. I took missions from him, obeyed orders, but whenever I could, I sent Nagato in my place. When Nagato couldn't take my place and I had to speak with him, it ended, without fail, in an argument of some kind as soon as I opened my mouth. There was always some philosophical dispute between us that ended up left unresolved. Luckily, I was too proud to throw the first punch and the Hokage had too much self-control so it never came to blows, but I was escorted out of his office by ANBU every few months.

I had plenty of chances to say 'I told you so,' which probably only made the situation worse. At least I knew when enough was enough and never accidentally pushed the Hokage too far in our arguments.

(-_-)

In celebration of the fifth anniversary of peace and Natsuki's promotion to Genin, Nagato and I took her out of the village to train with us for the day. Both Minato and Kushina received a Genin team at the same time. Sakumo asked to apprentice Kakashi to me, but I had to refuse. I didn't trust myself not to reflect what I could remember of the older Kakashi onto the younger boy, and I was too close to Sakumo to be impartial about the boy's progress. Instead, he was placed on Minato's Genin team alongside Rin and Obito. I was extremely leery about the matchup, but since we were at peace and I hadn't seen hide nor hair of Madara, I didn't protest it, not that anything would have been done if I had. I may have been stronger than most shinobi in the village, but I didn't have anywhere near the political sway I should have, and Minato's new team was a political move to appease the Uchiha and civilian sectors. Even though he was only eighteen, Minato was almost universally recognized as the Sandaime's eventual successor. I wasn't entirely sure how it happened, but it did.

Minato and Kushina were recognized as a couple by everyone but themselves. Kushina's team, by extension, was a political move as well. Natsuki was placed on her team mostly because she was the only person who could teach her Uzumaki Fūinjutsu from a shinobi perspective. Alongside Natsuki was an Aburame and Akimichi, the younger brothers of the future clan heads.

To be perfectly honest, taking a day-old Genin out of the village without authorization was not the smartest idea Nagato and I ever had, in fact, it was probably the worst. We didn't go very far outside of the village, probably only a mile. We didn't do very much training, it was more Nagato showing off and me providing an indestructible target, then impressing on Natsuki that even if she managed to figure out the techniques, she wasn't allowed to try them without one of us supervising. Everything went smoothly until I sensed something odd outside of the barrier. Nagato picked up on my unease immediately and lowered the barrier so I could pull on the Kyuubi's chakra to identify that was up. Nagato barely kept up as I scooped up Natsuki and raced for the village.

"Stop them!" Someone shouted behind us. I smoothly passed Natsuki to Nagato and intercepted a gigantic blade about to cleave Nagato in half. I recognized Kubikiribōchō in an instant and was extremely grateful I pulled my tantō and one of my sticks out instead of both sticks. Although, according to Kushina, since I refused to read the scroll left to be by Uzumaki Mito that explained their capabilities, they were powerful weapons, especially for being devoid of a sharp edge, I feared the sticks would buckle against the other six swords of the Seven Swordsmen descending on me. If I had been relying on anything but my chakra sensing, I would have been killed. Fortunately, I narrowly avoided death and managed to cover Nagato's back. He started to turn and help me.

"Get back to the village!" I shouted at him. He hesitated. "Now!" I screamed, engaging with the new wielder of Samehada, which I was fairly sure was a very young Kisame, but I couldn't be sure. I wasn't entirely up-to-date with the Bingo books, and last I knew, Kisame wasn't yet a Swordsman. The Seven Swordsmen fell into rank, only to be replaced by three people I immediately recognized. They were all Jinchuuriki. I knew them for certain. While I was undoubtedly the strongest Jinchuuriki in the shinobi nations, I kept tabs on the others. "Nagato! It's an Invasion by Suna and Kiri. Get your sister back to the village and activate code black, the hand seals are Serpent, Rat, Dragon, Tiger. My life depends on how quick you get reinforcements here."

"But—" Nagato protested.

"If you don't go this instant—"

Nagato took off in a shunshin as I faced down the three Jinchuuriki. Any one of them alone I could have defeated without too much effort. I could have defeated them one at a time, back-to-back, however, all three of them at once and I honestly didn't know how it would turn out.

They weren't the biggest threat. Alongside the Seven Swordsmen, the Sandaime Kazekage, flanked by the Honored Siblings and three other Suna shinobi I vaguely recognized from the Bingo book appeared on my left. On my right was the Sandaime Mizukage, flanked by a handful of shinobi I didn't recognized, but based on the size of their chakra signatures, they were at least Jōnin. Every single person was glaring at me in utter hatred and the combined killing intent made my knees weaken. My red hair and haori were plain for them to see, they all knew who I was, and everyone present, except perhaps the Jinchuuriki, had a very good reason to hate me.

I nervously readjusted my grip on my tantō and stick, casting my senses out to see how big the attacking force was. I had no idea how they got so deep into fire country without setting off a hundred alarms, but it felt like almost every single Jōnin and Chuunin shinobi from both Kiri and Suna were present—I couldn't sense far enough to get an accurate scope of the attacking force.

The Kyuubi was just as unhappy as me, though not terrified. Frankly, transforming entirely into the Kyuubi was the only chance I had.

"You can't win this, _boy_ ," the Kazekage sneered at me.

For the dramatic effect, I just smirked and transformed into the Kyuubi and heading straight for the bulk of the invasion force to kill as many shinobi as I possibly could. The Kyuubi snapped up a dozen Chuunin and shook body parts over the army, toppling trees in every direction. To my surprise, the Rokubi Jinchuuriki lost control first. As soon as the full form of the Rokubi took control, Kurama started to grapple with it, rolling across the shinobi who survived the first assault. One of the Kyuubi's claws was about to kill the Jinchuuriki when the Sanbi and the Ichibi barreled into Kurama's unprotected side. It was a battle of titans and I was not-so-safely tucked deep in the chest of the outnumbered and losing side. The battle wreaked havoc on the invading force, but the grappling started to bring us nearer to the village walls. Kurama read my thoughts and started to pull the fight away from the village.

I wasn't sure how long we fought, but it was at least several minutes, during which we laid waste to a section of forest and farmland the size of Konoha. No matter how strong Kurama was, he couldn't compete against three of his siblings at once, who had near-equal strength each. Just in time, Minato and Kushina landed on the back of the Rokubi, who was giving Kurama and I the most trouble due to the flexible appendages and slimy body. In short order, the Jinchuuriki's seal was tightened and the Rokubi disappeared. Kurama turned on the Sanbi with renewed vigor while Minato and Kushina strengthened the seal of the Ichibi. The Sanbi stood no chance against Kurama, especially without the Jinchuuriki and Bijū being in harmony.

The Sanbi and Ichibi disappeared within seconds of each other as Kurama annihilated the Sanbi and Minato and Kushina strengthened the seal on the Ichibi.

I began reversing the transformation and barely managed to catch Minato and Kushina before they hit the ground from at least five stories. It was a good thing I did, both were nearly unconscious from chakra exhaustion and would have died from the fall. Two medics ran up, glancing around as if they were defying orders, accompanied by Nagato.

"Get them off the battlefield," I gasped out.

The medics nodded and picked them up, fleeing. "Nii-san?" Nagato asked sharply.

"I'm fine, I'm fine, status?" I wasn't fine. At the very least I had chakra exhaustion and I suspected my chakra coils were damaged.

"Reinforcements have already arrived; you are not fine, you're barely standing."

"Give me a minute," I gasped, much more drained than I expected to be. Fully transforming for so long wreaked havoc on my body. Flushing my body with unfocused medical Ninjutsu mitigated most of the damage, but it only made me more exhausted. The last time something drained me that much was an ANBU mission with Nagato that ended up much harder and longer than I expected. It took me nine days to exhaust my reserves to dangerously low levels. I had just gone from nearly-full reserves to almost nothing over the span of less than ten minutes. It was a miracle I wasn't catatonic with shock. After several seconds, I felt the beginning stages of shock setting in. I shakily tried to stave it off. It was too dangerous to collapse in the battlefield.

"It looks like the little brat isn't doing so great right now," one of the Seven Swordsmen sneered. Nagato and I quickly stood back-to-back, although Nagato was right. I could barely stay upright.

"No big talk today?" Another mocked.

Nagato tensed in anger behind me.

"Calm down, Nagato, they're trying to get us to make a mistake."

Nagato relaxed slightly, but the taunts obviously still bothered him.

"Guess you can't repeat your petty little victory from before." The Yuki shinobi spat at me.

"Well, if I repeated trapping you in a quarantine seal then you would have to be pretty big idiots to land in the same trap twice."

"Your swordsmanship is nothing compared to the weakest of us!" The young Kisame hissed.

"Probably not, but I know I'm better at Ninjutsu."

They scoffed and started hand seals in unison.

"This is not gonna be fun," I squeaked and felt the earth loosen beneath us. I swung my arms around to start the tornado. Nagato added water to it, turning it into a whirling storm of blades. I couldn't see clearly enough to identify the technique they used, but it came very close to penetrating the tornado. I barely managed to pump more chakra into it before it broke. Unfortunately, that left me running on the last scraps of chakra. If they attacked again, I would be forced to draw on the Kyuubi's chakra, which would hurt Nagato and myself more than it would hurt them.

When their attack didn't let up, I started to get truly scared and my knees refused to support me.

The second the attack ended, I cut the supply of chakra to the tornado. A dozen ANBU had engaged the Swordsmen. I tried to take a step forward to help, but my legs didn't respond. I would have fallen flat on my face had Nagato not caught me and dragged me out of the fighting. I shoved down the panic of chakra exhaustion when my legs continued to refuse to respond.

Nagato propped me up against a tree just out of range before racing back to fight. My blood ran cold when I heard voices behind me.

"Mizukage-san, Kazekage-san, this is your one and only chance to retreat. You cannot defeat Konoha on her own ground." The Hokage's voice rang out.

"Your bleeding heart has turned against you, _Hokage_ , none of your precious little leaves can help you." A pulse of chakra raced across the ground, building a barrier less than an inch away from my foot. If my leg had been across that line…

I stifled a whimper. When I was at full strength, I might not have been Kage-level, but I could hold my own against a Kage, if pushed to it. Exhausted of chakra and barely able to move, I didn't stand a chance, and now I was at risk of getting caught in the crossfire of a battle between Kage.

One muscle at a time, I pulled myself as close to the tree as I could. It was one of the many trees grown by Hashirama, thus more durable than most trees, but a careless or redirected strike could cause a lot of damage. I slid into meditation, trying to regain chakra as fast as possible, at least enough to move if I absolutely had to.

I listened to the battle behind me, on edge. The other two Kage had the Hokage pinned against the tree I was hiding behind. When the fighting was at its fiercest, I dared look out. The energy required left me panting. As I looked out, the Hokage was forced to release his staff, which I recognized as the transformed version of the Monkey King, Enma. In doing so, it gave him the slimmest of opportunities to land a hit on the Kazekage. He took the opportunity. Everything appeared in slow motion. Just as the Hokage severed the Sandaime Kazekage's head, the Mizukage thrust his own blade at the Sandaime's exposed back, even as the Monkey King transformed back to try and stop him. He wouldn't make it, but I could.

I didn't know what made me do it. I had nothing but ill will for the Hokage. I didn't care whether the Hokage lived or died. If the circumstances were different, I would just as easily be the person behind the blade.

The seal on my forehead exploded with pain as I threw myself in front of the blade. It went through my heart, and my momentum across its path directed it away from the Hokage. The Mizukage barked out a curse, but the Hokage swung a very familiar stick, one of my sticks, at the Mizukage. He desperately tried to swing his sword up to block, but even as he tore it out of my chest, ripping through lung, bone, and muscle, eventually biting deep into my upper left arm, the Hokage's attack landed on the Mizukage's head. The barrier fell as Enma appeared behind him and snapped his neck.

The Sandaime barely managed to catch me before I fell, rudimentary Iryo-Ninjutsu glowing on his hand as he struggled to repair the damage to my heart. I couldn't even feel the pain.

"Medic! Medic!" He screamed hysterically. "You can't die, boy, you can't!"

"When I left…for Iwa, you ordered me…not to." My vision blurred and I couldn't see his response. "Fitting, I suppose, that…I die defying orders."

"You're not going to die, Kichiro." He promised me, but I didn't believe him. "Medic!" He screamed.

"The Kyuubi's seal…it will release him at my death…I altered it."

"Medic! You're not going to die, I swear." He wasn't even trying to heal me anymore. "Medic! Medic!"

"It looks like I won, _old man_ , you…really have no control over me. There's…no way for me to survive this, I…don't have enough chakra left."

"You will survive, Kichiro, you will, I swear."

"I'm not scared, it doesn't hurt. I'm—ready. Tell—tell everyone I'm sorry." My vision gave out completely, I hoped I wasn't dead as I forced out the last few words through the blood drowning me. "Tell—I love—" Blood filled the back of my throat and everything went white.

* * *

 _Author's note: Greetings from Houston! If I'm perfectly honest, this last scene was one of my favorites to write. In fact, I liked it so much that I wrote it from the Sandaime's perspective too. Go check it out on the sidestory!_


	65. Chapter 65

_Author's note: A lot happened between the end of last chapter and the beginning of this one. Namely, the Sandaime has a pretty significant shift in perspective. If you want a bit more on what happened and what he did, go to the sidestory. The chapter is titled "Chapter 64" and if you can't see the chapter titles, it is chapter 21. Sorry if that is confusing._

* * *

I wanted to wake up in one of two places: heaven (which I wouldn't mind the slightest) or hell (which I sincerely hoped wasn't an option).

Imagine my disappointment when I found myself lying on a bed with a heart monitor beeping beside me. For a long time, I lay there, convinced I was back in my old world. The room was otherwise quiet, exactly how I expected a coma ward would be. I didn't want to open my eyes, hell, I didn't want to keep living if that was the case. I missed my old life, sure, but I had already lost everything I cared about there, I had lost it all long before I ended up in the Naruto world. In my new life, I had a family. I had friends. I had a purpose. I had a good life.

Even so, I knew I had to get up sometime. Laying there wasn't going to fix anything or make me feel better.

To my absolute surprise, and moderate relief, I immediately recognized the room I was in as Konoha's intensive care ward for high-value or flight-risk patients. Without moving anything but my eyes, I scanned the room. Beside my bed, the Hokage, wearing his funeral clothes, sat reading a small, hand-bound book. I automatically recognized Jiraiya's handwriting on the cover. There were several titles that had been scratched out, and Jiraiya had settled on 'Tale of the Utterly Gutsy Shinobi'.

The Hokage was on the last few pages. If the pain in my chest and the ache throughout my body was any indication, I wasn't going to be moving anytime soon, so I waited for him to finish. Besides, if this was hell and some facsimile of the Sandaime was my eternal torment, I much preferred him reading Jiraiya's to-be published book than focusing on me.

When he closed the manuscript and sighed wearily, I decided I had better speak up or else my eternal torment would probably last longer than eternity.

"So am I alive or dead?" I rasped.

To his credit, the Hokage barely twitched in surprise. "Alive. Most definitely, miraculously, alive," he answered. His voice had none of the steel edge I was used to, that I was comfortable with. "Tell me honestly, Kichiro," he murmured. "Do you hate me?"

It was an odd question, but I didn't see any harm in answering it. I thought about my answer for a long time, but as much as I wanted to respond with a vehement 'yes,' it wasn't the truth. "No, I don't think I've ever hated you. I've been angry, disgusted, disappointed, frustrated and more, but never hatred."

"I see."

"No, you don't." I responded dully.

There was a long silence, but it wasn't tense or combative like I had become accustomed to the silences being. Frankly, I didn't know what to do. Whenever I saw the Hokage, it had always been expecting, or instigating, a fight of some kind. This time, I didn't want to fight, and it seemed, he wanted to avoid one. It felt nice but, at the same time, unnatural. For the first time ever, he wasn't studying me. He just stared at the book in his lap.

"Did you like it?"

He glanced up, confused.

"The book. Did you like it?"

"There are a thousand questions you could, and probably should, be asking right now, but you ask about a book."

I didn't respond to that, only turned my head so I could see him better. Or, I tried to. Pain raced down my back at the attempted motion, so I grimaced and lay there staring at the ceiling. He saw the flash of pain and started to reach towards the table before I gave up the movement. When I settled, he pulled his hand back to his lap.

He tapped his finger on the cover. "Why did you ask about book? Why didn't you ask about what happened? Why didn't you ask if everyone's okay?" There was no energy in his words, it was like a husk was going through the motions.

"I can't do a damn thing about it just lying here, can I?"

"You're not fighting me anymore."

"Neither are you fighting me."

"Since you aren't asking, I'll tell you. It took twenty-four hours for the medics to save your life."

"That should have been impossible."

"It's a miracle you survived."

I frowned.

"The medics got to you just in time and were able to keep you alive until Tsunade arrived. You're not the only person who can work impossible feats." There was a long silence I wasn't willing to interrupt. Eventually, he started to speak again. "Because you and Nagato snuck out of the village against orders, you were able to intercept the attack force before it reached the village, and you killed half of the attack force in your fight with the other Jinchuuriki, only three Jōnin and eight Chuunin of Konoha died in the resulting battle. It's estimated that there would have been up to a thousand casualties if the force had made it any further. You saved a lot of lives."

"Ironic, that it was by defying orders."

"Ironic, yes."

Since I didn't want to start a fight, I bit back my smart-ass response.

He spoke extremely slowly, as if to make sure everything he said was absolutely perfect. Several times, he paused and had to force out the words. "Time and time again, I've been presented with evidence that, no matter how much you seem to disprove it, you're as loyal as they come. I— _underestimated_ your intelligence and your resolve. Most importantly, I— _misjudged_ your character. I think I've known it since the beginning, but until now, I didn't realize how much. As Hokage, I—I _failed_ in my duty to you and I deeply regret it. I have no right to your forgiveness, but I wholeheartedly apologize for my words, actions, and thoughts concerning you, both in your presence and behind your back."

That was the last thing I expected him to say, and I was struck dumb in response.

"A long time ago, you told me something along these lines: an apology means nothing if nothing is done to fix the situation. I have come to see that your wisdom, when shared, has often, if not always been greater than my own despite your age. It has been a grave error on my part to have refused to acknowledge that for so long." There was another long silence as I craned my neck, ignoring the pain, to look at him. "I, Sarutobi Hiruzen, Sandaime Hokage of Konohagakure, release you, Uzumaki Kichiro, from the Shitagau, which binds you to my service."

A weight I didn't even realize I was carrying lifted from the center of my chest. Moving my arm was so painful it inadvertently brought tears to my eyes, but I pulled my hand out from beneath the hospital blankets. I flexed my hand and the seal crumbled away, dusting the white sheets with black.

"Here," he pulled a damp cloth from somewhere out of sight and gently wiped away the seals. I just laid there, dumbstruck. "For a long time, I thought the Shodai was the strongest individual I would ever meet. Looking at his physical strength, I still believe that to be true. But the strength that matters: wisdom, of course, but also the strength to be kind, the strength to stand by your convictions no matter what, and the strength to listen to and understand others, going so far as to recognize and yield when you are wrong, even though you don't admit it, all of those are things that this world needs. You are all of them and more, because of that, I now believe you to be the strongest man I have ever met; I finally recognize that."

I was openly gaping at him now as he neatly folded the cloth and set it down.

"I have not given you the respect you deserve and I swear that will change, from now on. If you have anything to say, ever, speak up and I swear I will listen." He paused as if waiting for my response. "Maybe your perception has changed, but I know you never wanted to be a shinobi. The paperwork has already been filed. You are released from any and all orders, contracts, or obligations you have to Konoha. If you wish to remain a shinobi in service to Konoha, I will make it so. If there is nothing else, I have taken up enough off your time." The Hokage stood and placed Jiraiya's manuscript on the bed beside me, in easy reach, if I could move properly. "You asked if I liked the book. My answer is that I liked it very much. I included my comments on the text in the margins. Your recovery will take time, and I believe this will make the process a bit more bearable. Is there anything you need?"

I stared at the book for a long time. He walked over to the door and put his hand on the doorknob. After a long minute, he started to open the door. "Will you please stay for a little while longer?" I asked softly.

There was a moment of hesitation before he closed the door and turned around, his eyes on the floor.

"I've always prided myself in my ability to beat everyone's expectations of me into little pieces."

"That is a trait to be admired in a shinobi," he interrupted.

I thought carefully about what I was going to say next. "I never held your actions and words against you. Even though I can't say I would have done the same thing in your position, I can understand your reasoning and, for the most part, it lined up with your personal code. I can't fault you for that. You claim you don't deserve my forgiveness, but that is just another point we disagree on. I forgive you, Hokage-sama. I don't know if I'm strong enough to forget, but I still forgive you."

"Thank you," he murmured, his voice thick with emotion.

"I want to remain a combat medic."

He nodded. "I will make the necessary arrangements." With that, he left.

I stared up at the ceiling for a long time. It must have been several hours at the very least, because the pressure in my bladder slowly built. It wasn't until I was ready to try and get out of the bed myself, damn the consequences, when someone knocked twice on the door and opened it without waiting for a response. It was Tsunade.

"You look worse than shit," she said without fanfare. "You came in with a giant hole in your chest. Your heart was in tatters, your left lung bisected, it's a miracle you're still alive, considering you had severe chakra exhaustion on top of that. Your chakra system was in tatters from the insane amount of Bijū chakra you channeled. All three things should have killed you. That's before the rest of your injuries, albeit minor ones in comparison, but severe in context of the rest, are considered. During surgery, your heart failed four times and none of the blood inside of you right now it your own. Thank whatever kami there is that your sister somehow managed to store some of her chakra in a seal before this whole mess started. If it wasn't for the chakra transfusion, you would have certainly died. Even so, you spent eleven days in a coma. If it wasn't for sensei, the medics would have given up on you."

"Sorry?" I apologized uncertainly. While I liked Tsunade as a fellow medic and was the only male in the village who stood up to her, she still terrified me whenever I was her patient.

"You better be sorry. You have so much medical Ninjutsu inside you right now that any more will poison you. You're going to be stuck in that bed for the next few weeks."

"Joy. How are Minato and Kushina now?"

"They fought two Bijū, how do you think they are? Last I heard, Minato is bedridden at home due to chakra exhaustion, nothing overly serious. I think he's woken a few times, but he's still out of it. Kushina recovered within three days, but she's been periodically exhausting herself by giving you more chakra transfusions to keep you alive. We sent her home almost ten hours ago, and now she's waiting outside the door. Before you ask, no, you can't go home. Frankly, you shouldn't be conscious. I don't want you moving and risking tearing apart what the other medics managed to fix."

"Then how am I supposed to pee?"

She held up a bedpan and I groaned.

Once I suffered through the ordeal of relieving myself, Tsunade changing the bandages, and everything was cleaned up, she went to the door and scowled at Kushina. She was half-asleep and wearing day-old clothes but she didn't look injured.

"Make sure he stays still," Tsunade said on her way out.

Without acknowledging Tsunade or saying anything, Kushina crossed the room and crawled under the covers beside me, pressing her cold fingers and toes against my skin.

"It's cold," she murmured, laying her head on the pillow next to me, nestling her head against my collar. "I'm so tired."

"Chakra exhaustion does that, thank you for having my back, I wouldn't have survived without you."

She squeezed my hand. "You're welcome, now be quiet, I'm going to sleep."

I chuckled, but quickly stopped from the pain. I just smiled instead and took her hand in mine.

Five minutes later, Kushina sat up. "Where's Nagato?"

"I don't know," I said. "He got me out of the middle of the fighting and I didn't see him after that."

"I think he saw."

"Saw what?"

"I think he saw you die."

"Oh, um, that can't be good."

"I've been home, but he hasn't visited at all. I even checked the visitor's logs to see if he came here for you. In fact, no one's visited. I think Nagato thinks you're dead-dead."

"He might not be in the village; he might be on a mission."

"He might, but the funeral for those who died in the invasion was two days ago. I was there, but I didn't see him, and he would never miss that."

"He's probably on a mission."

"Yeah, probably."

"If it makes you feel better, I'll find out for you as soon as I can get out of this damn bed."

"You know the medics don't—"

"I'm a medic, Kushina, the normal rules don't apply to me."

She wasn't convinced, but she settled back down beside me. "I'm cold."

"Me too. Chakra exhaustion does that."

"My feet are cold."

"I'm not surprised."

"Minato was cold too."

"Why aren't you with him?"

"He went back to sleep, the clan doctors are starting to worry about him, but he's just sleeping. There are no nightmares or complications."

"You need to rest."

"Yeah, but I'm worried."

"About?"

"You. Nagato. Minato. Natsuki. The rest of the family. I'm even worried about Jiraiya-sensei and Fugaku." My face briefly twisted with confusion at Fugaku's name before I remembered they were teammates.

"There isn't anything you can do about any of it."

"I know, that's what I'm worried about. Fugaku's father died during the invasion, now he's the clan head, and he doesn't want to be head. It means he can't go on missions. His mother and cousin took themselves out of the line of succession so he doesn't get a choice in the matter since there's no one else left in the main family. That means he has to get married and have kids. Mikoto is the strongest kunoichi near his age, so she's dragged into the whole mess as well."

"Tell me, is there anything, anything at all you can do to help or fix it."

"I could persuade someone to seal up the compound until Fugaku gets his way."

"Let me rephrase, is there anything you can do without causing an incident."

"Um, no."

"Fugaku and Mikoto are clan ninja. They know they have to do things for the good of the village that they might not agree with."

"Yes, but—"

"But what? If it wasn't for Minato, you would be in the same boat."

"Huh?"

"What? You two aren't dating yet?"

She sat up and lightly slapped my shoulder. "That's not funny."

"What? You already live together and I know—"

"Shut up." I fell silent, smirking, as she flopped back down and decided my arm made a better pillow.

I stared up at the ceiling and fidgeted with a loose strand of her hair.

"Nii-san!" She shrieked suddenly, shooting upright and throwing the covers off. I tried to sit up in alarm, but fell back with a groan as pain overpowered that movement. Whatever alarmed her was immediately forgotten as she fussed over me. "I'm gonna go get Tsunade," she decided and hurried out before I could protest.

"Kushina!" Tsunade's scolding rang through the hospital. A moment later, the door burst open and Tsunade rushed in, pressing a hand over my heart. "He's fine, Kushina, don't do something like that again or I'll tether you to your own bed."

Kushina gave Tsunade a pitiful look and the woman stormed out, exasperated. As soon as she was gone, Kushina sat down beside me and started to unwrap one of the bandages around my chest.

"What are you doing?" I asked, alarmed and still wincing in pain.

"The seal on your hands and your forehead is gone, I want to see if the anchor is gone too."

"Anchor? What do you mean?"

"Minato and I may or may not have drugged you while you were sleeping on several occasions to get a good look at the Shitagau."

"You really weren't supposed to do that, but yes, the Hokage removed the seals just after I woke up."

"So you're free?" She asked in a small voice.

"Yes, I am."

She looked like she was ready to cry. "Does that mean you're going to leave?"

"What? No! Of course not! What makes you think that?"

"You hate it here, Nii-san, you always have."

"No, Kushina, I don't hate it here, I never have. True, I hate specific things about Konoha, but I'd rather be here than anywhere else in the world."

She sat beside my head, leaning up against the headboard and absently brushing my hair off my forehead. "A lot of people saw what you did for the Hokage. You're a hero."

I closed my eyes. "I don't know why I jumped in front of that sword."

"Because you care."

"I wasn't going to. A long time ago, just before I went to Iwa, the Hokage ordered me not to die for him. I should have died. Whatever _voodoo_ that kept me alive shouldn't have worked. I couldn't have healed that kind of injury, and in the middle of a battlefield, I wouldn't have tried."

"The Kyuubi doesn't scare me anymore, but I need you, Minato and Nagato need you, even Natsuki, Kakashi, Sakumo, and everyone else needs _you_. Thank you for living."

I reached up, ignoring the pain from moving, and grabbed her hand tightly. "I love you, Kushina, and I won't put myself in a position like that ever again."

She bent down and pressed her forehead against mine, squeezing my hand. "You did the right thing. As much as I want to scold you for almost dying, you did the right thing."

"Then why do I feel like the Hokage made a big mistake releasing that seal?"

"I love you, Kichiro. When we were little, you used to do a great job at hiding from me when you were scared or uncertain. For a long time, I truly believed you were my wonderfully confident and perfect big brother. When we got to Konoha, I realized that you weren't perfect. You had flaws just as big as me but they made you better. When you kicked me out of that room after the Kyuubi was sealed inside of you, I realized that most of your confidence is fake. I was fine with that, it was nice to know that I could help you, even indirectly." She paused and a cold tear moistened my hair. "While you were in ANBU, I found some of the coded notes you took when you were in Iwa. Someone, I'm not entirely sure who, decoded a few of them and planted them for me to find."

There wasn't much to those notes, considering I avoided writing anything down, even if it was in English. I didn't even know they made it back with me.

"You could have taken the Shitagau off at any time, I could too." She accused.

I closed my eyes.

"You could have taken it off, but you didn't."

"I didn't know if it would work," I responded.

"I talked to Ise about it."

"What did he say?"

"He said it was because you were scared. You've always been really, really strong and smart, and you were scared that it was going to corrupt you. You were scared you would start to think yourself better, stronger, smarter, kinder than everyone else, and use your power why what you perceive as right and good, without taking other opinions into account."

"That's enough, Kushina, you're wrong."

"No, Nii-san, hear me out. You were scared, so you made sure someone would always be stronger than you, someone would always keep you in check. You may not have done that intentionally, but you let something that was against everything you believe in to persist because of it."

"That's so very wrong, Kushina."

"Then what's right?" She lifted her head. I could feel her studying me, but I didn't open my eyes.

"Yeah, I was scared, but I wasn't scared of myself. I knew from the beginning that no matter how I felt, unilaterally taking over was the wrong thing to do."

"I don't understand."

"I learned a lot from ANBU, I learned more than just skills. I learned why it's important to obey orders. I learned that I can't just follow my own set of rules. The laws and regulations exist for a reason, and whether I agree or not, to uphold the government, everyone must follow them. Thinking the rules don't apply to me and acting as such delegitimizes everything and makes me no better than a criminal. That's ultimately why I didn't ask you or Minato to remove the Shitagau as soon as I was able."

"That's not the entire reason."

"No, it's not. I'm not trying to make excuses, but the Hokage has the entire village relying on him. He oversees, and is responsible for everything, from the most dangerous, heinous mission to the most routine D-rank. He sends ninja to their deaths on a regular basis. Whenever a regular ninja does something against their morals, whenever they are forced to compromise their code, they can hide behind orders. The Hokage can't." I opened my eyes and looked up at her. "I live here, Kushina, so do you and the rest of the family and thousands of other people. What happens when the Hokage becomes numb to everything and he no longer sees everyone as people, but as tools? What happens when the Hokage loses his morals to his job? It wasn't until recently that I got strong enough to pose more than a passing threat to him, without committing suicide."

Kushina averted her eyes.

"Yes, I deliberately antagonized him more often than I care to admit, and yes, he practically tortured me for it sometimes, but I made sure the worst of his cruelty, the brunt of his frustration and hatred were all focused on me. If his worst is on me, it makes him that much more driven to do his best for everyone else. I'm happy to make that exchange."

"Nii-san—" Kushina breathed, tucking her head into my neck. "Why do you have to be so selfless?"

I didn't answer.

"The Hokage stopped to talk to me while you were unconscious."

"About what?"

"Nothing in particular, but I told him why."

"Why?"

"He needed to know why you took that sword for him. I told him even though he didn't ask."

"What did you say?"

"I told him it was because you cared."

"I don't know why, to be perfectly honest. I shouldn't have done it. I had every excuse not to, including orders."

Kushina absently fidgeted with my hair. "Because you care."

"What do you mean?"

"I think you're tired of life, of everything, and you want to make what's left worth something."

"I don't understand, what do you mean?"

"Over ten years of your life has been spent fighting or dealing with the effects of fighting and conflict. You were on every side of the war; you saw and felt more than most. You've already had your fair share of pain and suffering, from enemies, allies, and even family. You're tired of it. You think there's nothing more you can give, no, there's nothing more that can be taken from you. You wanted it to end on your terms with the last thing that is truly yours."

"You think I'm suicidal?"

Kushina flinched. "I don't think you're suicidal, Nii-san, but I know you want to die."

"You're wrong."

"This time I'm not." She wasn't wrong.


	66. Chapter 66

I pulled my hand away from her, closed my eyes, and turned my head to the side, ending the conversation. She didn't leave or stop fidgeting with my hair. Eventually, I drifted off to sleep.

When I woke up, the room was empty and moving wasn't nearly as painful. Just as I started to try and sit up, the door opened. The Hokage entered, and as soon as he saw me propped on one elbow, he hurried in and lowered me back down onto the bed.

"You're back," I stated neutrally.

"It's been four days since you last woke up. The good news is that Kushina is back to light duty. The bad news is that your chakra levels are not rising. Chakra transfusions from your sister, facilitated by a seal she invented, is the only thing keeping you alive at this point. All the meagre chakra your body manages to produce is collected around your heart and consumed. Tsunade suspects the blade that nearly killed you had special properties because several pieces are still inside of you."

"Why are you telling me this? Nagato or Kushina are responsible for making decisions for me right now."

"We're at war again."

"I'm assuming you're just a shadow clone."

"Correct."

"And someone wants to perform a surgery to find and remove the splinter."

"Correct."

"What do you want from me?"

"Will you consent—"

"It's not like I really have a choice. It's not a high-risk surgery, not if it's performed by a competent medic."

"Kushina brought to light some alarming concerns."

"She told you I was suicidal, didn't she? Well, she's wrong. I'm not."

"Then you won't have a problem letting a Yamanaka verify it."

I frowned. "I'm not going to kill myself, I swear. It's going to be a long time before I can move out of this bed. The only good I can do right now is give you information. If you want it, all you have to do is ask."

"We can't afford to stress you—"

"I can manage the stress. Monitor my pulse if you're so worried."

He reached out and took my wrist. The feeling of a chakra construct holding my wrist was unnerving, but I tolerated it. "Nagato activated the Rinnegan." He stated bluntly. "You were right about the fact he had it, by the way."

"Of course I was right." I could feel the blood drain from my face, but I carefully kept my body under control. "He saw, didn't he? He saw the Mizukage—"

"Yes."

"Where is he? I want—"

"He locked himself in his room at home with his sister, hasn't let anyone in, refuses to listen to anyone."

I tried to sit up again, but the Hokage put a hand on my right shoulder, effectively pinning me down. I was too weak to resist a clone. In the back of my mind, I hoped there was at least one ANBU guard in the room because I was completely vulnerable to an assassination and by now, most of the shinobi nation probably knew it. "Let me go, I have to—"

"No, you cannot go anywhere."

"You just told me—"

"Natsuki-chan is fine, as far as I can ascertain, but she seems to be on Nagato's side in the matter and refuses to see reason or listen to news. Kushina, with a little help from Minato, can unlock the room with a seal."

"Then why—"

"Ise-san does not want to risk fighting inside the house and Nagato spent too long in ANBU for them to be able to infiltrate the room and safely incapacitate him and Natsuki."

"If I go—"

"You are in no condition to go traipsing around the village."

"Why are you telling me this then?"

"You might know how to get through to Nagato."

I was silent for a long time, debating whether it was worth it to give the Hokage our way to identify each other. "Do you have any paper and a pen?"

The Hokage frowned but pulled out a small book I recognized as my own notebook. I scowled at the fact he had it as I ripped out a page, took the pencil he offered, and scribbled down the phrase ' _let lame lambs live_ ' in English. Nagato would recognize my handwriting immediately. "Slide this under the door and tell him I told you to say, ' _let lame lambs live_ ' and he'll listen to you."

The Hokage tried to repeat the phrase back to me but garbled it. I coached him through it until he could say it clearly, if heavily accented. The sounds were almost entirely foreign in the language and he had particular trouble with the tongue twister.

"What does it mean?" he asked, peering at the paper.

"It means I'm alive but injured and I sent you in my place."

"Thank you, Kichiro."

"You're welcome. Can I sit up now, please?"

"No."

"Please?"

"I will not anger Tsunade for no reason."

"I'm just going to sit up as soon as you leave anyways."

"No, Kichiro, you're exhausted."

"I just woke up."

"As soon as I leave, you're going to be too tired to move and trying to move will only make things worse. If you're serious about your promise not to die, you won't even try to move."

"Can I at least sit up?"

"The answer is no."

I rolled my eyes and the Hokage left, clutching the scrap pf paper and my little notebook in his hand.

Sure enough, after he left, I was too tired to do anything but fall back asleep.

(-_-)

I didn't know how much time I missed, but I woke up gritting my teeth against a sharp pain in my chest. There were several blurred faces above me.

"He's awake!" Someone snapped above the murmur of voices.

"Give him something to bite down on," I recognized Tsunade's voice, "The rest of you hold him down. His body will shut down if we try and knock him out now. Kichiro, blink twice if you can hear and understand me."

I quickly blinked twice as someone pried open my jaw and slid a dowel between my teeth.

"You're in surgery right now and we're almost finished extracting several splinters of the sword that nearly killed you. Blink twice if you understand."

I did as she said while two pairs of hands pinned my hips to the table and four more grabbed my arms.

"He's not going to struggle; I still want you to go hold down his legs and you to hold his head." Two pairs of hands released my arms. One set grabbed the back of my head and laid a hand on my forehead while the other grabbed my legs, just below my knees. "Kichiro, there's two more pieces and they are already imbedded in the scar tissue, so it's going to hurt when I pull it out right now!"

I groaned as she jerked something out of my chest. It felt like my heart and part of my lung were all getting pulled along with it until the sensation was replaced with a trickle of healing chakra.

"There we go. Okay, one more piece, but we're going to have to turn you on your stomach to get it. Relax and it'll be easier on everyone. One, two, three! Okay, just another minute, I know exactly where the little bastard is."

In short order, the last piece was pulled out, and my chest was swiftly rebandaged.

"Thank you for your help, ladies, you can go back to your normal duties now, I'll take care of him myself."

A chorus of acknowledgment answered her and Tsunade leaned over me, taking the dowel out of my mouth and checking my vitals with cold hands. In short order, she finished and started to clean up everything else while she talked.

"You're probably feeling like shit right now, so I'm going to tell you the news you probably want to hear and the rest can wait. It's been five days since you woke up and gave the Hokage the ticket to solving the problem with Nagato. We let the brat in to see you, but one look at you and he went into hysterics about how your chakra was acting funny and it wasn't like it was supposed to be, so we had to sedate him until he calmed down and he has been waiting in the lobby ever since. Minato is still bedridden, but conscious, but Kushina is back in the hospital from the last chakra transfusion to keep you alive, she should be discharged tomorrow. Hopefully, this will solve the worst of the problem. Everyone else is fine, so how about you close your eyes, you're not going to be able to see much anyways."

I closed my eyes as she slid me over onto a cot and wheeled me into a different room. By the time we reached the destination, I was unconscious once again.

(-_-)

When I awoke again, I knew it hadn't been nearly as long, a few hours at most, judging by the dull pain in my chest.

"Nii-san?" Nagato's voice rang through the room, much louder than I was ready for.

"I feel like shit," I mumbled.

"I thought you were dead!" Nagato sobbed into the bed beside me.

"I'm not dead," I promised, and tried to put my hand on his head. I missed and brushed his shoulder instead, grabbing a piece of fabric and holding on.

He grabbed my hand. "But you're cold."

"Nagato, look at me. Please."

He shook his head, but I cracked open my eyes and grabbed a fistful of his hair.

"Look at me," I said as forcefully as I could, tightening my grip. It came out as a croak.

He just shook his head again, burying his face deeper into the sheets.

"Nagato, if you don't look at me this instant, I swear I will thrash around until this wound reopens."

"Please—"

"Nagato, I am exhausted, in pain, frustrated, and upset. Look me in the eye so I can promise you I'm going to be fine. I know about the Rinnegan and I don't care."

Nagato wiped his face and looked up at me.

"I am going to be fine," I promised, forcing myself not to flinch at the frankly terrifying eyes staring back at me. "I promise you, Nagato, it will take time, but I am going to be fine."

Nagato choked back a sob and fled the room, nearly knocking over Kushina on his way out. She had to grab the doorframe for support, but by the time she regained her balance, Nagato was gone.

I groaned and slumped back ad Kushina staggered over. "I don't look that bad, do I?" I asked as she sat down on the bed beside me.

"You're pale, your hand is shaking, you haven't eaten anything solid in over two weeks, you're hoarse, you're wearing bandages instead of clothing, you've lost a lot of weight, there are the beginnings of bedsores on your hips and shoulders, and that sheet really doesn't cover anything, but they can't put a heavier blanket over you because they don't want to risk the pressure on your chest. I think it's safe to say you look worse."

I groaned.

"Are you hungry?"

"A little."

"I'll go and get you something."

Kushina hurried out. While she was gone, I did my best to slide myself into what could loosely be called a sitting position. She returned with a somewhat unappetizing array of semi-solid food, enough for both of us piled onto a single tray. I had a sneaking suspicion that not all of it was honestly acquired, but I wasn't going to protest. As unappetizing as it appeared, I was positively starved and would not protest the meal.

I painstakingly crossed my legs so Kushina could sit opposite me and we could eat together.

I barely managed the self-control necessary not to stuff my face. I started out with the mashed fruit, only taking a couple of bites and waiting for it to hit my stomach. It was a good thing I waited, since as soon as it hit my stomach, my gut twisted and I nearly threw it up. My excruciatingly slow eating irked Kushina to no end, but she didn't comment, even when she caught the small bowl and spoon I ate with several times when I didn't put it down fast enough after the cramps returned every few bites.

From the way Kushina kept looking over her shoulder, I suspected it wasn't entirely cleared for me to be eating solid food. Either that or we were being watched.

"Why are you so jumpy?" I asked quietly.

"I feel like someone's watching."

"Kushina, I'm the Kyuubi Jinchuuriki and I'm utterly defenseless right now. There better be at least two, preferably three, ANBU inside this room right now and one standing right outside the door. Depending on how many death threats I've gotten since I nearly died, a fourth and fifth guard might be wandering the nearby halls and vetting anywhere I might spend time."

"Why can't I see—"

"You're not supposed to see them."

"Then where?"

I sighed and closed my eyes, focusing on my senses. Chakra exhaustion for more than three or four days was not good, so I avoided using any chakra, not that I could anyway, since Kushina's chakra wasn't mine, it was impossible to control. Instead, I focused specifically on listening for breathing.

"There's one person breathing in the back, right corner, someone underneath the bed, and someone sitting in that chair."

Kushina closed her eyes and concentrated, but after a minute, she shook her head. "I feel like someone's here, but I can't prove it, much less find them."

I finished the last bite of mashed fruit and put the bowl down on the tray.

"Are you okay?" Kushina asked. I shook my head and slumped back, holding my stomach. "Do you want me to go get someone?"

I shook my head again. She stood up and put the tray on the little table beside my bed. After a quick vitals check, Kushina slid one arm under my hips and the other under my shoulders, laying me back down on the bed. Once most of the pain subsided, I felt slightly humiliated from the fact that Kushina could pick me up without chakra or much effort, as well as the fact I was naked under the blanket. I could do the same to her, but she was a year younger and a girl. Although, most preteen Genin could carry a full-grown man through the village without too much exertion.

She produced a damp cloth from somewhere and used it to cool my forehead, her face wrinkled with worry.

"I just—I just want to go to sleep," I murmured.

"Then sleep, Nii-san. The worst is past and we can handle the rest."

A few seconds later, I was out.

(-_-)

When I woke up, I felt refreshed and the pain from my chest was only a dull throbbing in the back of my mind. My eyes were crusted shut and when I reached up to wipe it away, only a mild soreness hindered my movements. I looked towards my right and saw a horribly scarred teenager dressed in a Chuunin uniform covered by a blanket slumped in the chair reading a jutsu scroll.

It took me a long time to figure out who it was, but once I realized the scars covering every visible inch of his skin were made from fire, not an odd-shaped blade, I recognized him immediately. "Nawaki?" I said in disbelief. His head popped up and he smirked at me.

"It lives," he commented sarcastically. "It's been about fifteen hours since your surgery, which was successful and you are finally on the way to actually recovering. Your sister and Nagato got into a rather spectacular fight a few hours ago and both are locked in a detention cell until they calm down. The last I heard, they were still shouting at each other and trying to throw punches across the hall from each other. No one knows what set them off, but they were in here when it happened. I'm here because I'm hiding from my teammates. Between Hiashi's hovering and Itsuki's influence, I'm never going to get another exciting mission in my life. My sister probably had a hand in it, but still."

"And that is entirely your fault. I could have taken that blast to the face and would have been just fine a week later." I carefully levered myself into a sitting position, relieved that someone had thought to put a hospital gown on me while I was unconscious.

"Nee-chan is gonna freak if she catches you, especially if you try—"

I swung my legs off the bed and stuck my tongue out at him.

"On your head be it."

"You could always stop me, you know."

"Sure, but I'm technically not here, therefore no responsibility."

"For a self-sacrificial brat, you're not half-bad. Think you can take it a step further and tell me where they're locked up?"

"They might have taken them to ANBU, since Nagato can pull out some pretty nasty shit when he gets pissed."

"You're just exaggerating."

"As soon as I pester the Toad Contract out of Jiraiya-nii and you don't have a gaping hole in your chest, I'll kick your ass for that. You actually still do have a hole in your chest, you know that right?"

I shrugged. "It's stitched up nice and tight if you want to give it a go." I stood up rather unsteadily.

Nawaki's eyes suddenly widened and he dashed out of the room so quickly I didn't even see what direction he went.

I shrugged and staggered towards the door. I reached for the knob, but someone threw it open and nearly knocked me over on their way in. Luckily, I grabbed the doorframe before I went toppling backwards like a tree.

Once I made sure I wasn't going to fall over, I looked up at the new arrival. It was Tsunade, and she looked as if she was ready to explode.

"What in the Shodai's name do you think you're doing?"

"Looking for a good fight," I responded, smirking.

"If it wasn't for the fact you aren't looking like death for the first time in almost three weeks, I would have some choice words for you."

"But I look much better and am totally rocking the hospital clothes, so you'll let me go?"

"Nice try, wise guy, your charm doesn't work on me. I'll be nice and let you walk back to the bed by yourself."

"I have somewhere to be, so if you'll just—"

Tsunade stepped to the side and blocked the gap I might have been able to squeeze through.

"You do realize I'm going to get up as soon as you leave, right?"

"Not if I ask the Sandaime very sweetly to add babysitting to the ANBU's orders."

"It'll take you at least a half hour to get everything official."

"True, but I know you let quite a number of ANBU slide on medical treatment and I'm sure they don't want to get taken off-duty for it."

"Actually, you're not going to find anything. I did my job—full healings."

"Then I'll just tie you down."

"If don't want me to teach Jiraiya a jutsu that can get him into the girls' side of the hot springs undetected, you won't even try."

"A jutsu like that doesn't exist."

"Oh really? Kushina and Minato have been using it for over a year, trying to spy on each other. They always try at the same time so they miss each other, but not even they have figured out that the other knows it or why they can't catch each other. How good do you think their sensei is going to be at it?"

"Jiraiya has infected them both."

"Give him some credit, they didn't even know what sex was until Kushina turned eighteen."

"She's eighteen?"

"She's been eighteen for two months."

"Doesn't act like it."

"Adult-ing is overrated."

"You're overrated."

"Well, that was immature."

"Get back in bed."

"No."

"Damn you, I'm not going to ask again."

"You haven't actually asked to begin with."

"You're trying to get me angry."

"I'm trying to make you exasperated and exhausted enough to give up."

Tsunade rolled her eyes and caught me as I staggered, my body rebelling against the exertion.

"Damn it, Kichiro, I was hoping you could stay conscious for a little longer!" A moment later, she laid me on the bed and everything went dark.

* * *

 _Author's note: Greetings from Dallas!_ _Do you want to guess how many reviews I've gotten in the past week? Answer: 22 REVIEWS! Although, not all of them were for the most recent chapters. There are a couple of new readers (welcome, ya'll) who gave a comment as they read. You guys are all amazing! Thank you so much for your attention and for taking the time to review!_

 _I started posting this story expecting about a hundred followers, maybe thirty or forty reviews. Instead, there is now over 630 reviews and over a thousand followers/favorites. Every time I look at the info before I post a new chapter, my eyes bug out in amazement. Thank you all so much!_


	67. Chapter 67

It wasn't until two weeks later that I was allowed (able) to leave the hospital on short walks to the market to get something to eat. Kushina was back to training her team, but Nagato had gotten into serious trouble with several civilians shortly after the two of them had been released and was extremely limited on what he could do. For the most part, he was confined to ANBU headquarters except for short visits home and to visit me when I started to instigate trouble out of boredom. It would be a long time before Nagato would be able to erase the three black marks on his record. It was a miracle he wasn't suspended. I suspected the Rinnegan was messing with his hormones, which was causing the erratic behavior, but I didn't have much influence when lying on a bed and with a track record of sneaking out of it to roam the halls and gradually build back all the strength I lost. The initial problems with the wound, perpetual chakra exhaustion, and the way the medical Ninjutsu refused to dissipate, leaving me to heal the long way, made the medic-nins, especially Tsunade, anxious.

While I admitted the lingering medical jutsu to be strange, it wasn't doing any harm. I didn't dare try and manipulate my chakra due to the still-damaged chakra pathways around my heart, but I carefully monitored my health and never pushed myself too far, which only made the medics seem more paranoid. It was understandable they would feel antsy when I resumed activity so quickly, especially since I was, by all accounts, supposed to be dead.

It didn't take me long to realize Nagato was not adjusting well to the Rinnegan. When I realized this, I tried to talk about it with him, but he left before I could get an answer out of him. The next day, he had scratch marks around his eyes, and it was probably the only reason the medics didn't protest too much when I marched out the front doors, barefooted, in my barely-modest hospital shorts, bandages covering my torso, my arm around his shoulders, leaning on Nagato a bit more than I strictly needed to.

I steered him towards the park I took him to when he first came to Konoha. A group of civilian kids around Natsuki's age chased each other around the playground. I pulled him over to the center of the playground. The kids didn't pay us much attention as they dashed around.

"How are you feeling?" I asked neutrally.

"I should be asking you that," he grumbled, jumping up and swinging himself up onto the monkey bars.

"I've been injured and hospitalized plenty of times before, you haven't had your world upended like this before." I reached up, and with a bit of strategic jumping and a well-placed foot on the wooden support pole, I made it up beside him. I may have lost most of my muscle mass in the scant six weeks in the hospital, but I still had the capabilities of a well-trained Genin, if it didn't tear open the slowly-healing wound.

"I can't turn it off," he choked.

I was surprised he didn't bullshit an answer, but the way he alternated between fearful looks at the children and angry looks at me, he knew I brought him to the playground intentionally. There were no parents, so he couldn't storm off and leave me there, not if he wanted to stay out of the hospital himself. He couldn't get angry and traumatize the poor children. The most he could do was scowl and ignore me.

"I see every little damned detail and I can't turn it off!" Nagato barely kept his composure. After a minute, he clamped his hands over his eyes. "Sometimes, I just want them gone."

For once, I was at a loss for how to help him. The Hyuuga and Uchiha clans kept their Dōjutsus secret, but considering I'd never actually fought an Uchiha that had a chance at defeating me, Sharingan or not, and I had never fought a Hyuuga, I never realized how much the Dōjutsu improved their skill, and I certainly never even thought about the effects. Sure, the Mangekyō eventually blinded the wielder, but I never considered the effect it would have on Nagato. There was no doubt he was a genius, but his brain probably couldn't handle the amount of input from his eyes.

"Nagato—" I croaked, at a loss for what to do. "I'm so sorry, this is all my fault. I'm so sorry. I didn't think it would—I didn't think, I'm sorry—I'll find—" My heart pounded painfully. On one hand, no one had seen hide nor hair of Madara, not even rumors, since he appeared in ANBU. I didn't believe the potential threat was neutralized, but I knew every year Madara went without a successor, the less likely his plan could be set in motion. I didn't even know if anything I said to him held water. I suspected Nagato reported the incident to the Hokage or Kagami even though I preferred to believe the incident never happened, there was no record whatsoever. As much as I liked to deny it, Nagato was a real troublemaker when left to his own devices for too long, but he knew I didn't always make the best decisions and no longer supported me when I antagonized the village leadership.

"Nii-san!" Nagato shouted. Somehow, I was lying on the ground, Nagato leaning over me, pressing hard against my chest. "Help!" He screamed into the air. "Medic! Somebody help!" A kid was crying off to my right. I couldn't breathe. I looked down and saw blood welling between his fingers. "Help!" Nagato screamed again. One of the kids, a little girl who could barely see through her tears knelt at my side. Nagato replaced his hands with hers and vanished. A few seconds later, he returned, dragging Tsunade behind him.

"What the hell happened?" Tsunade demanded.

"I don't know, we were talking and then he froze his chakra suddenly went crazy, but it wasn't a Genjutsu and he got scared and kept apologizing. Then he started bleeding and nearly fell so I carried him down."

She leaned over me and reflected light from her forehead protector into my eye. "He's unresponsive, probably shock of some sort, we need to get him back to the hospital." Nagato closed my eyes and as several hands started to lift me up, I drifted into unconsciousness.

(-_-)

"Enough!" Tsunade's raised voice jolted me out of whatever numb trance I was in. "I don't know what's wrong with him, no one does. The Kyuubi chakra and the medical Ninjutsu had all been flushed from his system, even your chakra was mostly gone, yet he started bleeding through his skin. He's stable, but no one has a clue what happened, there was no further damage. That's all we know, young lady, so quit getting in the face of every medic that walks in here!"

"I'm just trying—"

"To figure out what's wrong, I know, but assaulting medics will not get you answers we don't have."

"Hearts don't just stop!" Kushina shrieked.

"His heart shouldn't even work right now!"

"Try again, please? You said the medical Ninjutsu had been flushed out, maybe it will work this time."

Tsunade's teeth ground together, but she obliged. Medical Ninjutsu flooded the area around my heart, eventually seeping into it. "There," she concluded, pulling away. "This is the best I can do. His heart is intact, albeit heavily scarred, I can't remove the scarring without risking his life, and the rest of the wound is closed. His ribs are fully healed, if weak, and his lung still has a bit more blood and fluid inside than I'm comfortable with, but that will clear with time. Now, Kushina, leave my medics alone. The only doctor in the village who hasn't tried and failed to figure out the problem is Kichiro himself. There's nothing more that can be done except keep him on bed rest until he's fully healed. He's somewhat conscious, but if I catch you stressing him out in any way, I will shut him in one of the closed wards and he won't be able to see anyone."

"Yes, Tsunade-sama," Kushina replied, properly contrite, if not entirely sincere.

She left, shutting the door behind her with a sharp snap. Kushina sat on the edge of the bed beside me.

"You really attacked a medic?" Nagato asked in disbelief.

"She was being bitchy first." Kushina absently combed back my hair.

"He's not your doll, you know that, right?"

"He doesn't care."

"Yes, he does, he just doesn't say anything because you're his sister."

"Then he can deal with it, Minato doesn't let me play with his hair anymore."

Nagato took my hand and pressed it over his eyes.

"What are you doing?"

"My head hurts."

"What does that have to do with anything?"

"Kichiro's chakra is thick enough it blocks out the other chakra."

"I don't understand."

"I can see chakra, closing my eyes doesn't turn it off."

"Oh. Are your eyes why Kichiro is the only medic you ever let near you?"

"No, Kichiro showed me what kind of damage a medic could do with Iryo-Ninjutsu. It's terrifying. I'm not even going to risk pissing off a medic ever again."

"Wimp."

"Have you ever seen a heart beating on the outside of someone's chest? That's what Kichiro did to a guy who tried to torture me. The guy's team begged for mercy after that."

"That's disturbing."

"Kichiro put his heart back in the end, but it was still terrifying."

"You know, most medics can't do something like that."

"I don't care, I'm not going to risk it."

Both fell silent for a long time and eventually I forced my eyes open. Kushina smiled down at me. I tried to sit up, but she held me down with one hand on my sternum.

"You scared me, Nii-san," she said conversationally.

I felt a chill run up my spine. "I'm sorry. I didn't mean—"

"Of course you didn't _mean_ to collapse in the middle of a playground and terrify a dozen children. Now, I am personally going to make sure that doesn't happen again."

I groaned.

"I think we understand each other. Tsunade thinks your episode might have had something to do with stress. Now, Nagato has a sister to pick up from training."

For a long second, Nagato glared at Kushina for unsubtly kicking him out.

"You didn't have to do that," I commented once she left.

"He was the only person there when you collapsed."

"I didn't collapse."

"Keep telling yourself that."

"You didn't have to kick him out."

"Yes, I did, if not for your sake, for mine. Natsuki wouldn't stop whining about how she hasn't seen him in a week."

"How long was I out?"

"Four, maybe five hours."

"I'm starving."

"I'll get you something to eat, but if you so much as twitch before I get back, I will put another hole in you."

"Wouldn't that be counter-productive?" I teased.

"You already claimed you'd never be getting married, so there are certain anatomical aspects I am fairly certain you will never need."

"Kushina!" I flinched and tried to edge away from her. "I should never have allowed Jiraiya anywhere near you."

She just laughed and stood up. "Minato will be here soon, don't let him run off, I need to ask him—"

"Ask me what?" Minato asked, opening the door and carrying in a bowl of rice. "Tsunade said this is all you get for food today, sorry." He handed me the bowl. Under Kushina's critical eye, I sat up and glared at her. "Ask me what, Kushina?" Minato interrupted when Kushina and I made no indication of ending the staring contest.

She glanced towards Minato, then realized her mistake, but I already turned away and started on the rice. "Could you cover for me while I—"

"No. Kichiro doesn't need to be babysat. He knows his limits and I'm sure his— _episode_ was just as frightening for him as it was for everyone else."

"How did you—"

"Know what you were going to ask? I can read minds."

"Bullshit."

Minato shrugged. "I could tell you that you're just that predictable, but I don't think you would take it well."

Kushina scowled. "You're sleeping on the couch tonight."

"Ooh, lover's quarrel, I wish I had some _popcorn_!" I commented. Both went red and turned to me, furious.

"We. Are. Not. Dating." Both growled menacingly at me.

"The children doth protest too much, methinks."

Kushina lunged towards me but stopped herself at the last minute. "You're going to pay dearly."

"By the time I'm well enough for you to beat up, I'll be well enough to evade you."

"Yes, but you'll probably be almost two months out of practice, you better call in some debts."

"I raised you!" I pointed out.

"Some job you did at it," she smirked.

"You're alive and reasonably healthy, aren't you?"

Kushina was about to retort when Minato butted in.

"Okay, Kushina, I sent my team on _that_ D-rank, and you gave your team tomorrow off, right?"

"Of course, but this person screwed up my plan—"

"Wait, you had something planned?"

"Not anymore."

"Good, you know how we're scheduled to go off to fortify the Iwa lines so they don't get any ideas, right?"

"Minato, we got taken off the rotation because Fugaku—"

"Kakashi is coming with us and an Aburame volunteered to be team leader."

"We can't take Kakashi to the Iwa lines, they hate Kichiro and Sakumo too much."

"We're not fighting Iwa yet, it's a show of strength, but that's beside the point. I want to put the permanent seal on. Sensei and the Hokage checked it over, and it's good to go."

"Really?"

"What seal?" I interrupted.

"Hiraishin," Minato answered, smirking.

"Nice. I knew you could do it."

Minato frowned and looked at me oddly. "How did you know?"

I frowned, confused.

"I mean, I was just a little kid when I started this, I barely understood anything about Fūinjutsu, and you thought I could do it then too."

"You knew more than I did."

"Sensei asked me earlier today, how I figured it out. It was ages ago, you told Natsuki and Kakashi some story about three kids who bent time and space to save the universe."

"I told all the other orphans a bunch of stories like that, but they were just stories. You liked the tragedies more, so I told you those, besides, I haven't told you any of the stories in over eight years. Between the two of you growing up, missions for all of us, and dealing with the aftermath of a war, there just wasn't a time."

"That's not my point, I explained the concept of the Hiraishin to you a week or two before, remember?"

"Vaguely, I barely understood any of it."

"Whether you understood the mechanics or not, you knew I couldn't figure out anything beyond the technical details."

"I'm not following."

"When Suna kidnapped me and Kushina, they had a second team that went after the Nidaime's jutsu. They were intercepted and killed, but in the struggle, all the Nidaime's notes on the Hiraishin were destroyed, along with a lot of other Fūinjutsu created by Uzumaki Mito, the Shodai, the Nidaime, and a handful of others. The only thing left of the Nidaime's Hiraishin was the seal itself."

"What's your point, Minato?"

"I had to reverse-engineer the seal."

"I know that much."

"Have you tried to reverse-engineer a seal?"

"Several times, yeah."

"You know how hard it is."

"I didn't take it completely from scratch so—"

"You always knew what the seal did, even if you didn't know how, right?"

"Of course."

"With the Hiraishin, I knew everything about how it worked, just from the seal, but I didn't know what it did. The Nidaime never tried to explain it to anyone, he locked it away with several other jutsu he created, claiming it was too dangerous, that it would give whomever possessed it too much power, power that could easily corrupt."

"I still don't understand."

"I couldn't figure out what the seal did! Did it magically move someone from one place to the next? Did it move them at very high speeds? Did it pull them through a tunnel? Did it tear them apart and reassemble them from nothing? What did it do? None of my explanations fit, but the principle behind your story fit perfectly."

"I'm still not understanding."

"I gave you a copy of the seal, you spent a whole day studying it."

"That seal is so far above my level, it wasn't funny. I couldn't make heads or tails of it, and I gave up after a few hours."

"You couldn't figure out the mechanics, but you understood what it did."

"Minato, you're not making any sense right now." I glanced at Kushina, silently asking her to interpret.

"You figured it out long before me."

"The Hiraishin? I still have no idea how it works, much less figured it out before you."

Minato looked taken aback and studied me intently. "You aren't lying."

" _No shit, Sherlock_!"

"You don't have to insult me in a different language, you know."

"You don't have to accuse me of withholding information."

"You withhold information all the time."

"Classified information! I am not a traitor!"

"Minato, stop, you're upsetting him."

Minato turned away, running his fingers through his hair repeatedly, so it stuck up in every direction.

"Kichiro?" Kushina asked warily as I relaxed against the headboard.

"I'm fine, I swear."

"Minato?"

"You expect me to believe it was just a coincidence that you told a stupid story that just happened to summarize, almost exactly, the function of a seal that was made, used, and locked away before the founding of this village, before any of us were born."

"I don't even know what story you're talking about, Minato."

"The one where a kid's father was kidnapped by a thing that was slowly consuming the universe, they saved him, but the kid's little brother got trapped, so she had to go back and save him, bullshit some power, happy ending and they all went home."

"'A straight line is not the shortest distance between two points.'" I quoted. The translation didn't sound quite right, but it was close enough.

"Exactly."

" _A Wrinkle in Time_ , you're telling me that the Hiraishin works like a method of travel in a children's novel."

"What are you talking about? Anyways, when I looked at the Hiraishin under that theory, everything fit perfectly. It took me a few months to make sure everything was right, but after a little experimentation, it worked." Minato tossed one of his now-signature kunai on my lap and rolled up his sleeve to reveal a seal inked into his forearm. I immediately recognized it as the Hiraishin seal, albeit slightly altered.

"That seal is single use."

"Yeah, I need to put a permanent one under the skin, and I need Kushina's help."

"By any means, don't let me stop you." I took another bite from my almost-forgotten rice.


	68. Chapter 68

Minato sat down at the end of my bed and pulled off his vest and shirt while Kushina dug sealing supplies out of her kunai pouch. His torso had several seals covering it, one, I recognized almost immediately, was the seal I created and forced Nagato and Kushina to wear. It was meant to prevent Bijū chakra from infiltrating his chakra system. It couldn't handle a lot of chakra at once without affecting me by proximity, but it was strong enough that being exposed to the chakra in small amounts wouldn't be dangerous at all. I had asked him to wear it, but since I had no authority over him, I couldn't force the issue and I didn't know he actually wore it.

"Now, hold still, or I'll make you lie down," Kushina scolded.

Minato scowled as she started to seal. "Your hands are cold."

"Blame Kichiro."

"Hey! What do I have to do with anything?"

"You have cold hands too."

"Do not!"

"Do too!"

"Kushina, focus please," Minato interjected.

"I am focused! It's not a difficult seal."

"Maybe not to you," I grumbled.

"Shut up, Nii-san," both snapped at me.

"Love you guys too," I retorted, taking another bite of rice.

"There, I'm done, you just have to activate it."

In short order, Minato was flashing all around the room while Kushina rolled her eyes. I was a bit disappointed. Minato wasn't very fast at it.

After the fiftieth flash, Minato stopped, standing in the middle of the room, swaying.

"I feel—dizzy." He went cross-eyed.

Kushina snickered.

"You look drunk," I deadpanned.

"I feel drunk."

I frowned. "Have you even been drunk before?"

Minato groaned, swaying dangerously.

"Kushina, you might want to catch him before he falls. You know what, I hope I didn't look that bad when I first tried that tornado."

"I saw you try it the second time and you looked worse, to be perfectly honest."

"Shut it."

Kushina rolled her eyes but grabbed Minato's wrist before he leaned too far to one side and collapsed.

It put her right in the middle of Minato's spray of vomit. Fortunately for him, he collapsed, unconscious, before she could react. I suppressed a snicker.

"I think he overdid it a little bit."

Kushina sent me a dull look. "I will feed you to the fish." It wasn't often that Kushina pulled out Uzu insults, but every time she did, I couldn't help but smile as it brought up memories of what was unconditionally, irrevocably _home_.

"I would love some fish, this rice is rather bland…"

(-_-)

Three weeks later, I was released from the hospital for real, but limited to tending to Minato and Kushina's Genin, plus Kakashi.

Even without the tragic background, Kakashi was a little shit on a good day. He contradicted almost everything I said, confusing the hell out of all the poor Genin except Natsuki. When it was just me and Sakumo, he was extraordinarily mellow and agreeable. I didn't begrudge him the reputation he was trying to foster, although I occasionally had to tell him when he took it too far. Natsuki was the bane of Kakashi's existence because, having grown up with him, she knew him as well as his father did. Even though Kakashi was a Chuunin, Natsuki, who was still a Genin and graduated almost two years behind him, could defeat him on a regular basis.

Sakumo didn't have a problem letting Kakashi push himself through the ranks and show off his genius, but between Nagato and I, we managed to persuade Natsuki to spend a few years in the Academy and not push for promotion so quickly. She could pass Konoha's standards for Chuunin without a problem, but she always fell short of the Uzumaki standards. Or so she thought. We made her pass the Uzumaki Chuunin standards before allowing her to take Konoha's Genin exam, and we were in the process of convincing her the Jōnin standards were the Chuunin requirement. So far, she believed us, and it put her head and shoulders above her peers, ensuring she should never receive a mission she couldn't handle.

Upon my release from the hospital, I could barely keep up physically with the newest of Genin, which was the primary reason I was placed with the six ankle biters, with a handful of others rotating through for supplemental training from me, most of them future combat medics. My goal was not only to train them, but to bring myself up to scratch. The only thing I didn't lose in the three-month recovery period was my chakra control. The Hokage gave me a choice. I could take over the hospital, freeing Tsunade to return to the lines as a battle medic, or go to the lines myself. If I could get myself up to combat-ready in three months, by the time the medic corps was to be sent out, I had my pick of assignments. I was sure as hell not going to stay locked in the village, especially when Minato, Kushina, and Nagato were all on the lines. I knew Nagato would be fine inside ANBU and combating Kiri. Sakumo, Kagami, and most of the older nin were stationed on the Suna front. Iwa declared war the week I was released from the hospital. With Kiri and Suna being the primary threats, recovering their militaries much faster than anyone expected, the Iwa front had very few young Jōnin, and none had a reputation. Minato and Kushina's only self-created reputation was inside the village as a very popular gossip topic. The two were besotted with each other, had been since the Academy, but both refused to acknowledge it.

Training four Genin, one should-be Chuunin, and one Chuunin would be interesting to say the least. I came out of the hospital with almost no stamina and my strength severely depleted, as well as cautious about using chakra and accidently killing myself by overflowing the chakra coils inside and around my heart.

"What are you doing here?" Kakashi demanded when I stepped onto the training ground where the six children I would be training waited.

"What are you doing here?" I retorted, rolling my eyes.

"I'm waiting for the idiot who thinks they can replace Minato-sensei."

I rolled my eyes.

"Don't be mean to 'Chiro-nii, Kakashi!" Natsuki scolded.

"Don't tell Kakashi-kun what to do, you temperamental jackass!" Rin retorted. Obito snickered and the other Genin looked distinctly unimpressed. Natsuki's teammates were Chōji Akimichi and Shou Aburame, both younger brothers to their clan heirs. I assumed Chōji was the future namesake for the Chōji I remembered from the story, though their personalities were drastically different. The current Chōji, according to Kushina's report, didn't rely on his clan jutsu unless there was no other choice. Shou's arsenal was still reliant on his clan jutsu, but over his time training under Kushina, he advanced surprisingly quickly.

I just waited impassively as the two girls glared at each other. Kakashi marched up to me. He was definitely the scrawniest of the eight-year-olds. The Akimichi and the Aburame were both ten, but the others were all eight. He glared up at me and I looked down impassively, waiting for him to make the first move.

"You shouldn't be in the active corps, you're too weak." I knew he was talking about being injured and laid up for so long, and I could hear a bit of concern in his voice. He still sounded more like a little insulting ass. Kakashi always got antagonistic when Sakumo was out of the village, an occasion that happened with increasing frequency over the previous two years, and with four of the six people he truly respected as both people and shinobi out on missions, he would be almost unbearable. Unfortunately, the other kids didn't have the experience to see past the assholery to know that Kakashi was stressed and actually cared. That inexperience instigated an outburst against him. Rin tried to defend him, but Natsuki's violent explosion, her teammates' protest against insulting a ranked officer, and Obito instigating even more mayhem had me rubbing my temples.

"Enough!" I snapped and they stilled under the pressure of my killing intent. I pushed a bit more on them than they were used to handling. "Kakashi is correct, because of a serious injury, I am not strong enough to be a part of the active corps, but I am your commanding officer and sensei for the time being. Kakashi, if you have a problem—"

"Fight me." Kakashi interrupted.

"I beg your pardon?"

"If you think you're strong enough to lead, prove it."

"I have nothing to prove to you, Kakashi, orders are orders."

"You never let orders boss you around before."

"Almost dying puts things into—" Kakashi spat an impressive fireball at me. I batted it to the ground with my bare hands and caught him in a wind prison when he tried to follow up the attack with Taijutsu. I solidified the outside layer of the prison to protect him from the four Genin who tried to leap to my defense with thrown kunai. "Uzumaki, you were off-target. Uchiha, your throw was too weak. Nohara and Hatake, get your emotions under control. Aburame, take your bug off me. Akimichi, you're out of position. Does anyone doubt my fitness as your commander? No? Good. I want to know what level each of you are at." I released Kakashi from the prison, dumping him on his ass. "Uchiha, have you activated your Sharingan yet?"

Obito scowled at me.

"I'll take that as a no, you're with me. Uzumaki and Akimichi versus Aburame and Hatake, no kill shots, everything else goes. Any questions?"

"What about me?" Rin demanded, her bottom lip trembling.

"What's your role on the team?" I snapped.

"Medic," she squeaked under my glare.

"Do you need me to spell it out for you?"

Her lip trembled and Obito stepped between us. "Stop being mean to Rin-chan!" I narrowed my eyes at him.

"And what can a dead last like you do about it?" I was going to wait to provoke him, but it was probably better to go with the flow. The boy needed his Sharingan, especially since he would be taking higher-stakes missions sooner rather than later. I kept everyone else in place with focused killing intent. Kakashi and Natsuki stumbled backwards when I drew my blade and pointed it at them. I had never pulled a blade against either of them before, in fact, I had never even used weapons against them. I wondered if they had ever seen my ANBU-issued tantō since it was normally hidden underneath my vest or against my back, behind my sticks.

I could see that I terrified Obito, but the boy stepped up until the tip was against his chest.

"Leave her alone," he growled at me.

"That's a lot of bark, but I know civilians with more bite than you. The stupid little imbecile you're defending isn't even worth the ground she walks on. Let me remedy that." I feinted to one side and swung the blade at Rin's neck. Obito barely blocked it and attacked back. He was strong, stronger than I was at the moment, though he still didn't stand a chance when I used chakra as a supplement. I kept myself just a smidge faster than he could go, scratching him just enough to put him under more pressure than he could deal with, but not too much to tell him he didn't have a chance. The second an opportunity arose, I disengaged and made him fight a Genjutsu. His stamina was better than I expected; I was already feeling the strain. Kakashi stepped forward to break the Genjutsu, but I waved him off, leaning heavily against a tree. "He can't break that Genjutsu without his Sharingan, the rest of you come here."

When they all gathered around Rin wouldn't look at me. "Hatake, your Ninjutsu was predictable, weak, unfocused, and out of control. Run laps around the training field on your hands until I tell you to stop." I paused. "What are you waiting for, get moving!" I wasn't going to only rip into him. "I'm sorry about what I said, Rin, but I needed to provoke Obito. You're smart and a vital piece of the team. Combat medics have the hardest, most dangerous jobs, except perhaps deep-cover spies. Now, Rin, what level medic are you?"

"Why?" She asked in a small voice.

"So I know how difficult I can make training before it becomes a risk."

"Level three," she said in a small voice.

I frowned. "You've been training for almost two years, young lady," I scolded. "At the very least, you should be a level six. Have you been working in the hospital at all?"

She flinched.

"From now on, you will be taking six-hour shifts at the hospital every day before we begin training, and I will be working them with you so I know if you skip or slack off."

She swallowed fearfully. "But—I-I can't."

"Why not?"

"I-I have to—um—I just—" She glanced between the others assembled.

"I'll address this after training today. You have until then to come up with your excuse, and it better be a damn good one. I want you to go through every Taijutsu kata you know, perfectly, while standing upside-down from a tree branch. I'll tell you when to stop."

Maybe my view was poisoned by the shinobi-raised kunoichi I knew, but except for the desire to become a medic, Rin had no drive. I knew both her parents, they often gave Takeshi trouble in the civilian political sphere, in fact, I knew they tried to arrange a marriage between her and one of the boys in my clan, but I shut them down as hard as I shut down the Oshiro clan. She was a good kid, but she didn't have any idea how weak she was, since her Academy peers were all based from the civilian sector, except for Obito, whom the clan had all but thrown out and had zero success in the Academy, Natsuki, who was a genius and a cut above most Genin, and Kakashi, who was also a genius and her crush.

"Natsuki, you almost hit Rin and Obito when you threw those kunai at Kakashi. You are a Genin, young lady, you should not be putting your teammates at risk with mere kunai. Target practice, now. Every time you get ten perfect hits in a row, both right and left-handed, I want you to take a step backwards until you can hit the target ten times in a row, with both your right and left hands from one hundred meters."

She winced and skittered away. Standard kunai were nowhere near accurate enough to accomplish that without a Sharingan. Minato's kunai could, as well as senbon and some shuriken, but that kind of accuracy was reserved almost exclusively for Sharingan wielders and weapons masters. I could only hit seven out of ten senbon at that distance. She should get stuck around fifty meters.

That left me with Shou and Chōji. "I'm going to be perfectly honest with the two of you. I don't know you well enough to see any blatant faults in your arsenal. I could have you spar and then set you to work, but the two of you are more mature than your fellow Genin. Is there anything in particular you need to work on?"

"Stamina," Shou said automatically.

After a few seconds, Chōji agreed.

"Have you two learned water walking yet?" They sent me a blank look before shaking their heads. "What about tree walking?" Shou nodded, but Chōji still looked lost.

"Shou, the principle for water walking is like that of tree walking, except you have to constantly adjust your chakra output." I made the rat hand seal and created a large depression in the ground behind me, hardening it so it could hold water. Several hand seals later, it was full of cold water. The two of them gaped at me. Rin almost lost her balance, but Natsuki and Kakashi were either too occupied or had seen my little tricks often enough that the awe factor had worn off. "Every time you fall in, take a lap around the water and try again. The chakra you'll waste trying to figure it out will help your stamina. If you haven't made progress in the next hour, I'll explain it in more detail. Chōji, for tree walking, you want to expel chakra from the soles of your feet. Too little and you won't stick to the tree. Too much and you'll blow yourself off. It's easier if you run up the tree and it will build your stamina the most."

I checked on everyone else, both Rin and Kakashi were struggling with the exercises, and Obito was beginning to slow down. The Genjutsu me continued to thrash him. If he managed to dodge, he just barely missed it, sometimes gaining a scratch or two to show for it. The closest he got to landing a hit was to my chest, and the edge of his knuckles barely brushed my clothes. I upped the pressure from my killing intent, forcing him to push himself harder, seamlessly blending back into the Genjutsu and eventually dispelling it. He never noticed the difference. I didn't blame him, plenty Jōnin still fell for the trick on a regular basis, even when they knew it was coming.

If it wasn't for how much experience I had on him, I wouldn't have dared face Obito directly, even in a spar.

I pushed Obito as hard as I dared, barely missing lethal strikes and causing him a lot of pain in general. I wasn't sure what clicked, but his Sharingan suddenly swirled to life. I knew I didn't have the strength and speed I needed to prolong the fight while he had such an advantage, so I spun behind him, disarmed him, and slammed him into the ground with a textbook Uchiha-style takedown. I wiped my blade on his sleeve and stuck it in the ground in front of his face so he could see his Sharingan. At the same moment, I let up on the killing intent.

"Congratulations, Obito, you activated your Sharingan."

He was still in battle mode and struggled underneath me.

"Calm down, boy," I ordered.

His heart rate gradually slowed, his anger ebbed, and he slowly regained control over his fear. Before he managed to deactivate his Sharingan, I flipped him onto his back and pinned him with my knee, forcing him to look at me, so he would forever remember what I said.

"You activated that Sharingan under duress. The pain and fear of failure, of not being good enough, feeling like you're about to die, the hopelessness from all that activated your Sharingan. Not your entire clan believes this, but the evidence is overwhelming from an outsider's point of view. Activating your Sharingan made you susceptible to your clan's curse of hatred." Obito's attention was completely on me. "According to Kagami, you'll have a harder time controlling your emotions, both positive and negative. You'll feel more strongly. This is not an excuse for anything. I know plenty of Uchiha who have kept themselves under control. Your Sharingan enhances what you can see and perceive, use it to help people, to get along with them, not antagonize them and cause division. This is your one and only warning, understand?"

Obito nodded.

"You can become Hokage, young man, but keep in mind, a Hokage doesn't just care about the village, a Hokage cares about each and every person in it, yes, but a Hokage loves every person under their command, every person inside the village, no matter who they are and how they treat you or anyone else. Each loss is the Hokage's responsibility and only his. If you are serious about your dream, I expect it to start now. Your hitai-ate and your Sharingan mean you are no longer a child and childish behavior is no longer tolerated, provoked or not. Do you understand?"

He nodded again.

"If you want to be Hokage, I expect you to be a cut above everyone else. Stronger, faster, smarter, more skilled, a better ninja, yes, but also more compassionate, kinder, more patient, always in control of yourself, loyal, respectful, and most of all, humbler."

At the last word, he broke eye contact and his Sharingan faded. I pulled him to his feet, ignoring the tears threatening to spill from his eyes. He tried to scrub them away, but I grabbed his wrists and knelt in front of him.

"Opposite the lake on the edge of the Uchiha compound, there's a grove of trees. Minato and Kushina like to hang out there because it's quiet, they built a little treehouse in one of the trees. Go there and think about what I told you. I'll see you here tomorrow, same time, for training? It's okay to cry, Obito. It doesn't make you weak."

I pulled him into a brief hug. He looked like he needed it.

After a minute, he pulled away and wiped his eyes. "Thank you, 'Chiro-sensei."

"You're welcome, Obito."

He turned and left with a skip in his step.

Kakashi stormed up to me when I stood up and turned away from Obito. "You're just going to let him leave?"

"He completed his objective for today; you have not."

"What's the point of running on my hands?" Kakashi demanded.

"I'm not your father, Kakashi, I'm not going to give you an easy answer, I never have. Now go."

"It's always about my father!" Kakashi threw up his hands and turned his back on me.

"Then prove it's not." I responded. "I lived under his shadow for almost three years, but as soon as I got a moniker, what little protection I had there was gone. I can't say I empathize, but I'm on the other side of that fence, and the grass isn't any greener. Do the exercises or don't, that's your problem, but don't you dare reject your father. You're the only family he has left."

"You wouldn't think so, the way he talks about you," Kakashi grumbled to himself. I knew I wasn't supposed to hear that. Instead of returning to his assignment, Kakashi started to practice his katas against the trunk of a tree.

I sighed and walked over to Natsuki.

"What'd you say to Kakashi?" She asked curiously.

"Put your nose back where it belongs, Natsuki. You should be another ten meters away from your target by now."

"Well, my aim sucks."

"So does your brother's balance. It doesn't mean he didn't work at it."

"Really?" She asked, surprised.

"What?"

"Is Nagato-nii bad at balancing?"

"Yeah, he sucks at it."

"Really?"

"Really."

"Really, really?"

"Really, really. Now, back on topic, your aim is the issue. You don't have a problem working hard on anything else."

She scowled.

"Natsuki, what's the problem?" I took two of her kunai and tested them in my hand before flinging them at the bullseye. They hit dead center. "There's nothing wrong with your blades, your stance is textbook-perfect. What's the problem?" I had an inkling, but I wanted her to come forward with it. I couldn't think of any other explanation as to why half her blades fell short, sometimes by several meters, and the other half were scattered across the target without a pattern. She sure as hell wasn't too weak to throw a kunai twenty meters. "Hey, your aim wasn't this bad when you graduated. In fact, when you graduated, you were much better than this. When I last talked to Kushina, your aim was fine."

She scrubbed at her right eye, but she wasn't crying. "It's nothing."

"Then hit the target." I handed her a kunai. She took a deep breath and threw the blade. Her aim was fine, it aligned with the center of the target perfectly, but was several feet short. "Try again." She threw the blade again, harder, and it stuck in the top of the target, perfectly in line with the center, but too high. "That's not nothing, Natsuki. What's the problem?"

She scowled and turned away.

Without warning, I cuffed her right ear. She stumbled to the side in shock, holding the side of her head. She didn't see the strike at all. "Care to tell me why you can't seem to see out of your right eye, which happens to be your dominant eye? Care to share why you didn't inform me of this the second you knew I would be your commanding officer?"

She hung her head.

"Natsuki, not being able to _see_ could get you killed, even in a spar, especially if no one knows to cover your blind side."

"'M sorry, 'Chiro-nii."

"Just tell me what happened."

"But—"

"Yes, there will be repercussions, Natsuki, a stunt like that could have gotten you killed. What happened?" She was crying now.

"I-I was sparring with Shou, he managed t-to hit me in the face once and my eye swelled up, so we decided to cut practice short. I went home went to sleep, and when I woke up, everything was blurry the next day, I woke up today and couldn't see!"

"Calm down. Natsuki, I'm a medic, I can fix these things."

"But you're still hurt! I went to the hospital and they said nothing was wrong, and I should just learn to adjust."

"Did a civilian doctor tell you that?"

She nodded.

"Natsuki, you're a Genin now, you should have seen a shinobi medic. I've been working night shifts in the hospital for the past week, under observation. I'm _fine_ , I just have to build up strength. Now let me see what's wrong." I knelt down and she knelt across from me.

She winced when I touched her eyelid with my thumb. After a minute of diagnostics, I found the problem.

It was a detached retina. "You're lucky I know what this is and how to fix it. Some conditions are time sensitive, you're lucky this one isn't." I wasn't an expert in fixing eyes, but I had spent plenty of time reading up on them during my stay in the hospital. "Rin! Come here please!" I called across the training ground. A minute later, the girl hurried up and took a knee on my left.

"I want you to run diagnostics on her and tell me what's wrong."

Natsuki gave me a very displeased look when Rin laid her hand against her sternum and closed her eyes. I just gave her a look that told her to deal with it.

"Minor fractures to the scaphoid and trapezium carpals of the right hand, one day old. A minor tear in the Achilles tendon, two weeks old." She paused for a long moment between each statement. "A minor puncture wound, presumably from a senbon, just above the left iliac crest, which goes all the way to the transversus abdominis, approximately two days old. Minor scrapes and contusions down the right side of the body, from the shoulder to knee, almost three days old. Minor contusion to the supraorbital ridge, three days old." Rin opened her eyes, smiling.

"You missed three minor things and one major one. Try again."

There was a long pause. "I'm sorry, I can't find anything else."

"I didn't ask you for injuries, I asked you for what was wrong."

Rin frowned. "What's the difference?"

"Assume that Natsuki is incapacitated, what would you do differently?"

"I would check for poison."

"You're two minutes too slow, she would already be too far gone. Now, you're sending her back onto an active battlefield. What would you do differently?"

"Check for Genjutsu."

"What else?"

She gave me a blank look.

"I'll give you a hint, it was a procedure I bullied Biwako-senpai to add to the guidelines almost six years ago when I figured out a way to diagnose it with Iryo-Ninjutsu."

Rin flinched. "Check for a damage to the brain and the senses."

"Now, follow procedure this time."

"Those are procedures for—"

"And I told you something more was wrong., that means stop repeating what you've done and try something new. You're better than this, Rin. Stop making excuses and do your job."

"I am!"

"Your job is to do your best and learn. This is not your best and you're not trying to learn."

"How good were you as a Genin?" She grumbled under her breath. I wasn't supposed to hear that

"By the time I was your age, I was a full-fledged doctor at the hospital. I was on the front lines at the beginning of the Second Shinobi World War for all but the first few days of my Genin career. The entire time, I was healing patients who were supposedly beyond help. I succeeded and even managed to invent a brand-new technique—several, actually—that turned the war in our favor. I was nine years old. Ask anyone, I'm not a genius like Kakashi or Natsuki, unless stubbornness is a form of genius. In fact, for a variety of reasons, _nobody_ believed I could remain a medic after I made Genin. By the time I was thirteen, only two people in this village could rival my skill. Since then, I have worked in every medical department in and affiliated with Konoha, both shinobi and civilian. Is that enough credentials for you?"

Rin refused to look at me.

"Run the diagnostics again and tell me what you find."

She obeyed. "There's an increased amount of interferon located around her head, duration unknown. No Genjutsu that I can find." She sucked in a sharp breath. "No vision in the right eye, duration unknown." A long silence followed that. "I've run every test I know; I don't know what the last thing is."

"Few medics with your experience could have found those two things and the last thing, I've only met a handful of medics who would have noticed it, and none of them would have been able to figure out what it was. Natsuki, turn around." She scowled at me but obeyed. I brushed aside her hair and pulled down the back of her collar a few inches to reveal a seal. "That's a location seal. Whomever is connected to it can finder her at any time, no matter where she is."

"That's against protocol."

"True, but only because seals aren't very difficult to hijack. This one, however, was made specifically for siblings, not even their parents could take control of the seal. Kushina is the best seal master in the village and she's tried to tap into it, with only a moderate amount of success. The best she's managed is to deactivate it, mostly because it disrupts any other seals placed on her for an extended period of time."

"Do you and Kush—"

"Let's get back on topic." Natsuki turned back around. "Can you tell me specifically what's wrong with her eye?" Rin shook her head. "Natsuki, can you lay down, please?"

She shook her head and pointed at me instead.

"Fine." I responded and shifted to sit criss-cross. Natsuki crawled into my lap, pulling her knees up to her chest. Since she was an infant, I healed Natsuki in my lap, mostly because she wriggled too much to do otherwise and partially because medical chakra had a tendency to put young children to sleep the more often they experienced it. Natsuki had grown up with Nagato almost panicking over every scrape and bruise and she was only now growing out of it.

I held out my hands to Rin. Cautiously, she let me guide them to cover Natsuki's eyes.

"Have you watched a healing before?"

Rin nodded.

"Good, just watch and I want you to tell me what I'm doing."

"But—"

"Since I'm in control of the healing, you'll be able to see more than you would by doing it yourself. I'm going to take partial control of your chakra to make sure you only see what I want you to see." I wrapped one arm around Natsuki's arms.

Rin kept up a steady commentary, even taking the initiative to monitor Natsuki's vitals. Ten minutes later, I was done, and Natsuki was fast asleep in my lap. I dismissed Rin back to her katas before I woke Natsuki up.

* * *

 _Author's note: Greetings from Houston! Kichiro is nineteen now, just for reference._


	69. Chapter 69

Ten minutes later, Natsuki returned to target practice, her accuracy much better, even if it wasn't quite up to par. At least she was hitting the target every time. I moved on to Shou. He picked up water walking surprisingly quickly. He could stand on the still water just fine, but any disturbance out of his control and he would fall in. I watched for a minute or two before turning my attention to Chōji. He had only made it a few feet up the tree, most of it from sheer physics.

After watching Rin run through one of the medic katas, I walked up behind Kakashi and put a hand on his shoulder when he ignored me. He stopped pummeling the tree. "Status of everyone here, oldest to youngest."

"Akimichi Choji, eighty percent of reserves remaining. Aburame Shou, ninety percent of reserves remaining. Uzumaki Natsuki, near-full capacity. Nohara Rin, thirty percent."

"You forgot three people."

"You're at near-full capacity in chakra, probably lower with physical stamina, but I know you can augment that through chakra. I'm at eighty—"

I cleared my throat.

"I'm at sixty percent, but there's no one else here."

I put a hand on Kakashi's head and turned it towards the path onto the training grounds. The Sandaime stood leaning against a tree and watching us, specifically, me. He signed for me to take my time with ANBU signs.

Kakashi flinched. "Don't rely on your chakra sensing. Any Jōnin worth their salt can duck under most radars. Use all your senses."

He nodded.

"Now that you've had time to think about it, what was the purpose of the exercise?"

"Chakra control."

"Specifically?"

"Using it on more than just Ninjutsu. And, you wanted me to cool down."

"Have you?"

Kakashi nodded.

"Go over to Rin and tell her she can get off the tree. Run through the academy katas with her twice and then spar. Academy Taijutsu only, and you're handicapped at twenty percent. Don't tell her this, but every time she hits you, you both have a lap around the entire village. If she can't finish, you have to carry her, deadweight."

Kakashi scowled.

"If you go above twenty percent or she hesitates to take an opening, I'll add laps. Have fun."

Kakashi was not happy, but he obeyed. I hurried over to talk to the Hokage. I landed in front of him in the regular ANBU bow, partially out of respect, and partially out of exhaustion. I didn't advertise it, but I didn't hide it either. He probably picked up on the strain from across the field. After a few seconds, I stood up.

He handed me a scroll. I opened it apprehensively. It was a message from the Tsuchikage, declaring war through the bodies of a team of Konoha ninja. I didn't open the seal.

"It will be another month before combat operations begin. I will be handing command of the Iwa line to Minato-kun at that time."

I took a deep, forced breath. "Is he ready?"

"No, so I will be sending you to advise him."

"I'm a medic," I responded flatly.

"You won't be there as an official advisor, you will be repeating your assignment at the beginning of the last war with a younger medic, limited to the Iwa front. I'm hoping to minimize the number of medics I'll have to devote to that front through your stamina and skill. I would prefer to place you on the Suna front where there is more need for your skill, but Minato trusts you, and I have learned from my mistake of blindsiding you with responsibility you don't want."

I shuddered at the thought of whatever the assignment he wanted me to take entailed then nodded. "Is that all?"

"No. Those Genin are the most advanced Genin the village has had in years. I want you to focus their training on being able to run messages, preferably in pairs. The number of Chuunin is much lower than it has been since the end of the last war. They're going to have to suffice as messengers. Ame and Taki have sworn neutrality in the conflict, so the Iwa fighting front is much smaller, limited to the border with Kusa. The borders of Ame and Taki will be under separate commands, but they are simply a precaution."

"Are there specific pairs you would like me to have them train with or do you want them to be able to rotate?"

"The Akimichi and Aburame would chafe against being stuck with one of their younger comrades, so keep those two together. As for the other four, I would prefer Natsuki and Kakashi to be on separate teams, they're too much of a target when they're together. If the dynamics refuse to work, put them on a three-man team and I'll find you another Genin or two who can be paired with the oddball. There are plenty of Genin in the village thanks to you." He sounded slightly resentful, so I gave him an infuriating smirk.

When he didn't rise to the bait, I continued. "If I can beat Rin's infatuation with Kakashi out of her, there shouldn't be any problems."

"Good to hear. Now, I don't mean to keep you from training—"

"You could have just as easily, and much more efficiently, summoned me to your office before or after training. Now for the pressing question: why are you still suppressing your chakra?"

"Your dear student is a little snitch." He vanished before I could ask who or what he was talking about.

I shrugged and turned back to the training. Kakashi and Rin were sparring with excruciating slowness, although, it was rather fast-paced for Genin less than two months old. Kakashi was damn fast when he wanted to be, so being stuck at twenty percent was probably torture for him.

"Kakashi! Focus on your form, you're getting sloppy," I called across the training ground before heading over to Natsuki and ignoring the dirty look he threw at my back. "Natsuki, that's enough target practice, you're going to hurt yourself if you keep it up much longer."

She scowled but retrieved her weapons and put them away.

"Let's spar, but I want you to keep it at fifty percent and focus on your form. Got it?"

She nodded and settled into the traditional Academy ready position.

"Whenever you're ready, begin." She immediately lunged at me, the first few swings in the Academy style before she switched to the Uzumaki style. I kept my feet planted, deflecting her swings without much of a problem. When she had a chance to run through most of the kata, I told her to up her speed to seventy-five percent. Her form was nearly impeccable. The only time I moved my feet was to stop her from flanking me and to exploit an opening from a mistake in her form. She corrected it every time. After almost twenty minutes, I told her to go all-out.

Keeping up with her wasn't my problem. Chakra covered for the weakness leftover from my injury. Every few hits I landed, I took her down with a rapid-fire combo. I repeated the same combo until she managed to thwart it before moving on to the next one. I took care not to outstrip her too much and avoided strengthening my body as much as I could, even if I did nearly turn off the pain of exertion and supplemented my physical energy with chakra. Artificially boosting my endurance was frustratingly simple, but very few medics had the skill to work on a cellular level. If I spent a few hours every day working on it, I would be up to my previous level of stamina by the time I was deployed. Covering for my lack of strength would be more difficult, but I could speed the process with the clever application of medical chakra and needing very little rest for healing.

Not letting anyone catch on to my abuse of power would be the most difficult, though most people would attribute it to being a Jinchuuriki. Natsuki executed a clever twist in midair that had clearly been copied off Kakashi, nearly kicking me in the head, but I caught her ankle, twisted, and slammed her into the ground, pinning her and chuckling at her curses.

"You might want to clean up that mouth before going home, there's no telling what Fusō would do if she heard you cursing worse than me."

"Stuff it, 'Chiro-nii. I'll get you eventually."

"Weak as a toddler or not, I am a Jōnin. It's going to be a few years before you stand a chance."

"Arrogant asshole."

"It's not arrogance if it's true."

She started thrashing in my grip. After a few seconds, I let her go. She came at me with a rather cute, although not entirely harmless, fury. She gave up on Taijutsu and broke out the Ninjutsu. I dodged her water bullets, snickering. Riling up Nagato was fun, although he was good enough now that I couldn't do it with impunity, but Natsuki was more easily angered than Kushina and she may have been a genius, but I had ten more years of experience than her.

When she pulled out the strong chakra chains, I was a bit surprised, but I evaded them easily. Kushina forced both Nagato and I to learn the Adamantine Sealing Chains with her several years before. The only problem was that using them in battle against other shinobi took more sadism than Nagato and I had. They burned the victim like hell and sucked enough chakra to kill most Chuunin in less than a minute. As of yet, not even Kushina had ever been in a situation desperate enough to use them in actual combat. At least, she hadn't used the actual Adamantine Sealing Chains. She used a different version she invented as very painful whips and restraints. In fact, she frankly abused them, both in combat and everyday life. The only reason I escaped their abuse as of late was because of Tsunade's edict about Kushina and bringing her temper into the hospital.

I owed Tsunade a lot.

My evasion tactics only frustrated Natsuki even more. I was never going to get anywhere near those chains again. After a few minutes, she calmed down, mostly because she raced through her chakra far too quickly. Finally, she backed off.

"Good job, but next time, keep your temper under control, it may help Kushina to get emotional, but it makes you sloppy. Back to Taijutsu now?"

She glared at me as I mussed her hair, which was cut just like mine and Nagato's. She settled into my favorite Taijutsu style: the Spinning Leaf.

"I didn't know you knew the Spinning Leaf. Did Nagato teach you?"

She didn't answer. I darted forward with a bastardization of the Hyuuga style. I couldn't block chakra, but I could sever nerves, and depending how much time I had, I could sever veins and arteries as well. She clumsily deflected the strike, trying to spin behind me. She accidentally turned her back on me in the process. "Well, that's unacceptable," I said, grabbing her shoulder, kicking the back of her knees, and slamming her face-down into the ground hard enough for her to lose her breath. "You tried to copy this from Nagato, he would never have taught you that move until you had nearly mastered the style."

"I copied it from you," she corrected smugly, albeit while wheezing.

"Interesting, but don't try that again unless you want to die with a knife in the back. If you want to learn, I'll teach you, just ask."

"If you haven't noticed, you've been in the hospital."

"Correction: I've been in the hospital with absolutely nothing to do except try to tract down cases to consult on. At least, that was the case until last week. I have things to do now. Your point?"

She rolled her eyes.

"Get up, we're going to go check on everyone else." She protested when I tossed her over my shoulder and carried her over to the Akimichi and Aburame. They had made progress but exhausted themselves in the process. I dropped Natsuki on her ass. "Boys, take two laps around the village, fifty percent, no stopping. Natsuki, take ten laps, full speed, no touching the ground. When you finish, you're dismissed for the day." As soon as they leapt away, I called Kakashi and Rin over to me.

Kakashi responded instantly, but Rin dragged her feet the entire way. Kakashi scowled as Rin trudged up. I really wanted to deck him for his expression, but I knew exactly why he was so sour and if I was young enough to get away with it, I would be just as surly. He started scowling at me.

"Rin," I snapped. "How many times to you manage to hit Kakashi?" I had been watching the match out of the corner of my eye and counted seven, as well as twelve missed opportunities. Kakashi never exceeded his limits.

"Three?" She guessed.

I looked over at Kakashi. "Care to correct her?"

"Eight," he grumbled, barely audible. I was surprised I missed one but made no indication of it.

"Much better. Rin, how many times could you have hit Kakashi?"

She mumbled something. Kakashi repeated it louder. "Fifteen." Faster than either of them could react and abusing chakra enhancement, I twisted Kakashi's arms behind his back, forced him to his knees in front of her, and wrenched his head back. Kakashi may have been a Chuunin, but he was still only eight, and didn't manage to stifle his cry of surprise.

"What—" Rin protested weakly.

"Hit him," I ordered. "Hit him for every time you didn't in that spar." Kakashi struggled against me, but he was too small to stand a chance.

She shook her head and took a step back.

"Hit him, Rin!" I bellowed at her.

She started mumbling her refusal and shrinking back. I sighed and released Kakashi; he turned around and buried his face in my vest, but not after sending a furious look at Rin. Her refusal to hit him was probably interpreted as mockery, insisting that he was too weak to handle it and indicating that he wasn't worth giving her complete effort to begin with. I knew that Rin didn't meant it that way, but I didn't have the time or the patience to straighten it out.

I couldn't understand the girl. She was smart, resourceful, and extremely skilled. Her Taijutsu was perfect, but poorly applied. She was on her toes, ready to dart in any direction. Even though her voice betrayed her and she couldn't make eye contact, her heart rate was perfectly controlled, her posture impeccable. She was utterly exhausted, but her hands weren't shaking. She was an emotional wreak, but she hid it better than most Chuunin. She was the image of a perfect shinobi, albeit a medic. She was the second-best student of her year; the only person better than her was Natsuki. Having girls in the top two places had been a bit of a stir, but it quickly died down.

"Rin, do you know who I am?"

She nodded.

"What do you know?"

Straightening and planting her feet, she went into reporting mode. "Uzumaki Kichiro, age nineteen, Jōnin of Konoha. Known as the Spirit of the Triage for his rile in the Second Shinobi World War. Student of Hatake Sakumo. Known specializations include: combat medicine, elemental Ninjutsu—mastery of three elements with proficiency in the other two—and Taijutsu. Head of the Uzumaki clan and proficient in Fūinjutsu. Two hundred and fifty-one reports of insubordination, but no court-martials. Older brother of Uzumaki Kushina, age eighteen, Jōnin. Official students are Uzumaki Nagato and Shiranui Genma, however, frequently mentors Hatake Kakashi and Uzumaki Natsuki. Recently discharged from the hospital for taking a sword through the heart in defense of the Hokage, after two hundred and twenty-nine specific instances of ignoring, disobeying, or outright protesting orders. My observations include: former ANBU, former war prisoner, an over-reliance on family members and close friends for emotional stability—"

I had to grab Kakashi to stop him from attacking her. The last few things were dangerous information for a Genin to have, true or not, and it probably came from her looking at files above her clearance, most likely my medical records, since that was the only thing she would feasibly have access to. Either that or she was there when I was brought in or at some point in my recovery period while I was unconscious. "It's technically five hundred and fifty-two counts of insubordination, the ones on the public record are only the ones filed by superior officers, not the ones against the Hokage himself. I've directly disobeyed the Hokage three hundred and one times and I've been punished every single time. Do you know why I'm telling you this?"

She shook her head.

"I'm telling you so you know no one can push me around or play with me. What makes you, a little medic nobody, think you are able to play my game?" It was a shot in the dark, but I had a good feeling she had an ulterior motive.

I almost cheered when she took a step back, but I limited it to a grin of triumph.

"What do you want?"

She glanced around nervously.

"Kakashi, go run your laps."

He took off.

"What do you want?" I repeated.

"I want to change this."

"Change what specifically?"

"The shinobi world."

I opened my mouth to answer her, but her answer brought me up short. "This isn't a discussion for a training ground. Walk with me." I led her towards the market and up to the same ramen stand Kushina and I first had lunch with Minato at. It was also the first time I talked to Sakumo after he brought me back from Uzu. "One small bowl, house special," I told the cook. I may have been starving, but unlike the rest of my clan, I couldn't eat ramen by the gallon. "What would you like? My treat." I asked Rin.

She stared at me blankly then ordered the same thing. After a few minutes of waiting in silence, Rin started to shift uncomfortably.

Ten minutes of silence later, the cook placed the ramen in front of us. I took two bites and waited for her to start before speaking. "Changing the shinobi world is a big mission for a little girl like you."

"I can do it," she retorted stubbornly.

"First, what do you want to change?"

"Everything."

"Then I'll tell you now: give up. Go back to being a civilian."

She balked, completely losing control of her expression for a moment. I considered it a win.

"Let me ask again: what specifically do you want to change?"

"I want to stop the wars. I want to stop innocent people from becoming collateral damage."

"How?"

She slowly swirled her ramen. "I don't know."

"Okay, then why? Why do you care about nobodies who were stupid enough to get caught in the middle of a conflict they had no stake in and couldn't possibly survive?"

"It's not right."

"What's not right?"

She ignored the question and continued to eat.

"Medics are reactionary," I stated when she finished half the bowl. "They don't stop the fighting. They help people survive it. If you wanted to stop the fighting, you need to be the strongest person out on the battlefield, strong enough that no matter how vast the army arrayed against you could become, they would still fear you, they would still back down, knowing that to face you would mean certain loss. That's the only way to get people to listen in this world. Maybe that could change in the future, but unless you want to wait until you're old and grey, you're setting yourself up for failure as a medic."

"You're wrong."

"Prove it," I snapped.

"What if it doesn't have to be fear that makes them back down?"

"What do you mean?"

"Everyone respects medics because they take care of people, they fix them, they save lives, right?"

"Go on."

"Everyone respects their skill, right?"

I nodded.

"It's because a lot of medics can bring people back from the brink of death, they can save lives and let them rejoin the fight that medics are the first targets in a fight, right?"

I felt a sudden rush of déjà vu, but still gestured for her to go on.

"What if medics weren't targeted at all?"

"That's a big 'what if'."

"What if medics helped everybody?"

The déjà vu feeling intensified. "I was about a year younger than you when I asked those questions."

"Did you find the answer?" She asked hopefully.

"Yes, but it's not the answer you want."

"Why not?"

"What if medics were strong and important enough that no one targeted them?"

"They could help everyone!"

"Without medics, there would be less shinobi able to fight."

She frowned.

"Logically, with medics, there are more shinobi to fight."

"What if medics were neutral? There would be less people dying!"

"This is what my sensei told me before I started training to be a shinobi: Suppose all medics are neutral. How would they get to places they were needed? The most efficient way would be for them to travel with ninja teams. Suppose the ninja team met an enemy team. They fight, the medic stays out of it. Suppose the enemy team wins. Because of their neutrality, the medic has to help both teams, but to help the enemy team, the medic would be betraying their home. How can the enemy team trust the medic now? Some people may be able to set aside their emotions, but most people can't, shinobi or not. The medic still has to help, they're still neutral. So, they help. Their hand slips when they're cutting of a piece of charred flesh, their patient dies. They move onto the next patient. They extract a little too much blood along with the poison, their patient dies. The next patient is beyond saving. The last member of the enemy team sees a pattern. If this scene is repeated enough, the medics are no longer neutral, they are death sentences. How can anyone trust medics now?

"That's not true."

"Before I was ten, I'd killed five ninja from Suna, all Chuunin, and only one of the kills had been attributed to me. I'd never been a part of an offensive operation against them, in fact, I'd healed several Suna ninja as well. Now tell me, why would they put a ridiculous bounty on my head and kidnap Minato and Kushina, who were Genin at the time, torture them, and send them back with a message to try to threaten me into quitting?"

She gaped at me.

"Before the attempted invasion, my actual kill count was thirty-two; officially, I only took credit for twenty-six. My bounty was much higher than the average Jōnin, even a Jōnin in black ops. It was nearly equal to the Hokage's bounty. Tsunade's bounty is almost double that of the rest of the Sannin, although it was still lower than mine. How does that make sense?"

"You're the Spirit. Some people think you can raise the dead."

"So?"

"You healed people so they could go back to fighting and they killed more people than you could ever kill yourself."

"Yet medics are fundamentally doing good by healing. Who is the real enemy then?" I asked rhetorically.

She stared at the broth in front of her, contemplating the question. "You don't know that answer, do you?"

"Unfortunately."

"You said you asked the same questions as me. What did you decide to do?"

"I decided to end the violence."

"How?"

I winced. "Most of what I've done has ended up classified far above your level."

"Does it have to do with your insubordination?"

"It has a lot to do with it."

"You're trying to change the Hokage's point of view." She looked up at me, quite proud of herself and barely holding back a smile.

"No." I stated flatly. She adopted a thoughtful look. "Don't even think of trying to do it either. I can guarantee you will be charged with treason and executed."

She stared at me, shocked. "But you—"

"The first time I outright defied the Hokage was because I had no other choice if I wanted to protect my sister. Don't misunderstand me, the Hokage was just doing what he thought was right. As one of the last living Uzumaki, and a ninja with a ninja legacy, there weren't very many ways the Hokage could discipline me for stepping out of line and he certainly couldn't kill me. I may not be particularly talented with fūinjutsu, but there isn't a seal master to spare in the shinobi nations, not after my clan was practically annihilated, and by the time I came home from the war, destroying me as an asset would be political and military suicide. You have none of that protection, your family isn't even a shinobi clan and I don't have the influence to bail you out."

When the Oshiro clan fell out of the Daimyō's favor, the Nohara clan picked up the slack. Their business wasn't as extensive, but they were excellent metalworkers and helped create weapons and armor for shinobi. Rin wasn't a prominent member of the clan and they didn't have enough leverage to protect her anyway.

I watched her slowly build up her mask as she continued to process what I said. Finishing off my bowl, I tossed down the money for my meal and hers. "My point is that I understand where you're coming from and I empathize with what you want. I won't tell you to give up on it, but it's my job to make sure you don't die or bring anyone else down with you. I'm not hypocritical enough to tell you to follow orders without question, but I never disobey or challenge orders in front of an audience, especially an audience of my peers or subordinates. Nagato doesn't count. I expect the same from you. Also, you're a smart and talented little girl. Don't waste your talent. Meet me in front of the hospital at oh-four-hundred hours tomorrow morning and be prepared to shadow me for several hours then to go straight to training."

"I'm not allowed out of the house before sunrise."

"Then don't get caught. You are a shinobi. Respect your parents where you can, but orders from your commander supersede theirs."

I left it at that.

* * *

 _Author's note: M_ _ost people do know that Kichiro is a Jinchuuriki but they just don't like to think about Kichiro as anything more than a doctor. Most of the younger generation has trouble connecting their beloved 'Chiro-sensei' with the giant monstrous fox that slaughtered an army. I could explain more but that's getting too close to spoiler territory._


	70. Chapter 70 - Part 11

After stopping by the hospital to bully myself and Rin on to the morning shift and checking in with Tsunade, who tried to, unsuccessfully, convince me to spend the night under observation, I went home.

Upon turning eighteen and able to make some legal decisions for himself, Gin had officially joined the Fūinjutsu business, but dove into a rather esoteric branch of Fūinjutsu. I didn't even understand what it was and I didn't try. He just gotten permission to marry a demure civilian girl from a minor clan. She was practically a servant of the main family, being the bastard child of the clan head's brother, but there was still politics.

Tamaki, the boy who had spent several years captive of Orochimaru, had started working in the hospital as a medic. While he didn't train as a shinobi, he was damn good at Iryo-Ninjutsu. He was only allowed to take shifts at the hospital three times a week, which annoyed him to no end, but with me, Tsunade, and Biwako backing the decision, he couldn't do anything about it.

The rest of the orphans had graduated school at fifteen, but instead of working with the other adults in Fūinjutsu, they bounced around odd jobs. By the time I got out of the hospital, they had all found careers they liked, even if they had to work part time until they mastered Fūinjutsu to preserve the clan's legacy.

Yuzu had found a boyfriend, or so she claimed. No one had actually met him, although Minato and Kushina took it upon themselves to vet the poor boy. I caught them before they could attempt to terrify him and made a bit of a scene dragging them away.

During the five years of peace, Fusō had given birth to three more girls. One of the women, Keiko, had gotten married to an Inuzuka shinobi who was a bit too happy in his use of explosive tags. Over the previous four years, she had six children, a set of girl twins, a boy, and a set of identical triplet boys. The last three had nearly killed her, and would have, if Kushina hadn't found a way to break into the Hokage's house while they were being born, at home, against everyone's advice, and grab Biwako, the Hokage's wife. Tsunade and I were both out of the village on missions at the time, both of which were heavily classified to the point where Kushina didn't even know I was gone. By the time I got back, the fiasco was over, but Biwako had strongly advised the woman not to have any more children. To everyone's surprise, all three of Fusō's girls had shown an early aptitude for being a shinobi, not that such a choice of career would be encouraged by anyone in the family. Keiko's children were still too young to be sure.

I was of the opinion Fusō and Keiko had taken it upon themselves to repopulate the earth, not just the clan, but that might have been because I couldn't walk in the front door anymore without being assaulted by redheaded ankle biters I could barely tell apart. Kushina thought it was funny and had sealed all other entrances to the house. The only one that remained was the one for emergency purposes and I wasn't desperate enough to use it. I could hide from the toddlers without a problem, the only problem was that Keiko's oldest boy was a natural sensor and my chakra signature was too strong to hide without Genjutsu and, without fail, alerted the boy as soon as I stepped into the house. Even when he was supposed to be fast asleep, in the middle of the night, it somehow woke him, and until they stopped making him sleep in a crib, he would wake up and scream until someone came to give him attention. That responsibility always fell to me.

By the time I escaped the hospital, it was ten at night, long after the bedtimes of everyone in the house except the teenagers. I suppressed my chakra as much as possible, creeping into the house. As soon as the door closed behind me, absolutely silent, the wails of a toddler could be heard below my feet.

A quick chakra scan of the house indicated that everyone except Minato, Kushina, and Nagato were home. I sensed another civilian in the living room with Yuzu, and a civilian in the library with Gin, but everyone else was in their rooms, though none of the orphans were asleep. Misaki stuck her head out the door of her room. She both gave me a rather vindictive grin and pointed towards the stairs. I rolled my eyes, hung my vest on the wall, slipped off my shoes, and hurried downstairs and picked him off the mattress he shared with his two older sisters. Gin's dog lay at the bottom of the stairs, giving me a mild scolding with his look. The baby grinned at me through the darkness his eyes couldn't possibly penetrate, drool dripping from his mouth.

"Chi-RO!" He said happily while I shushed him. Unfortunately, he was already too awake for me to settle back down. Fortunately, he didn't wake the other children. I carried him up the stairs and into the living room.

Yuzu was not happy about the introduction. The boy with her looked especially nervous.

"You're on clan property past village curfew," I informed the boy.

"What's it to you?" Yuzu defended. The orphans all kept their canine companions close. Yuzu's dog started to growl at me. I raised my eyebrow. His growling was at a low enough register that only shinobi could hear it. "Gin has his girlfriend over!"

"Hey, I'm not criticizing. The only problem is that I've never met Taro-san before."

"You're not my father," Yuzu snapped. "And how do you know his name!"

"I am a Jōnin and I do live here."

The boy took a step back. Yuzu rolled her eyes. "Kichiro, this is my boyfriend Taro. Taro, this is my older brother, Kichiro, and the toddler is Kaito."

"Hi!" The boy said at his name. He shyly buried his face in my neck.

"How many brothers do you have?" Taro asked warily.

"Biologically, none, but for all intents and purposes, I have six older brothers, an older sister, and one about to be older sister, three of them are Jōnin. I have six younger brothers, one of which is a Jōnin, and seven younger sisters, one of which is a Genin."

He gaped at her. "That's—twenty siblings, plus an almost-sibling."

"And five of them are shinobi!" She finished proudly.

"And there are eight adults?"

"Nine, now."

"I thought you said your clan was almost dead!"

"Twelve years ago, there were over two thousand people in our clan."

"You mean—over two thousand—that's double the Uchihas, Hyuugas, and Senju combined! At their peak!"

"Yuzu, I think it's time I took your boyfriend home," I suggested firmly.

She glared at me but nodded. "I'm coming with you."

"I come too!" Kaito clapped his hands.

"I see no problem with Yuzu coming, but you have to go back to sleep, Kaito."

"No!"

"Would you like to play with Gin for a little while?"

"No! 'Chiro!"

I didn't answer him, instead, I walked out of the room and down the hall to the library. I listened for a moment to make sure I wouldn't walk in on something awkward, before opening the door without invitation.

Kaito squealed excitedly as soon as he saw Gin's fiancée, Hiroko, and squirmed until I put him down so he could toddle over to her. "I'll be back in ten to take you home too," I told them as they scowled at me, grabbing Yuzu and her boyfriend by the arm and hurrying them out the door, snatching up my shoes and vest on the way out.

Exactly eight minutes later, we arrived at Taro's home. Neither were happy I knew exactly where it was.

"I'm a Jōnin," I reminded them. "I knew the day I got back from my mission after you started dating. It only took me an hour to track you down. You're just lucky I found out about it before Kushina. Say goodbye, I had a long day and I want to go to sleep."

After a few murmured words, Taro went inside. Yuzu giggled as I pulled her onto my back and took the rooftops back home, her dog running along below us. Kaito was waiting by the door when we arrived, already beginning to doze off. I set Yuzu down on the front step and picked him up as soon as I opened the door, careful not to jostle him. Hiroko had wrapped him in a thick blanket, and her and Gin were standing a few meters down the hall, watching him and talking quietly. I nodded at them while Yuzu and her dog made a beeline for her bedroom. I walked up to them just as Kaito fell back asleep in my arms.

"I'll send a clone to take you home," I murmured.

Gin rolled his eyes. Hiroko shook her head. "You don't have to bother, Gin can take me home." She had grown a bit of backbone since I first met her. Instead of bowing her head and agreeing with everything, she only gave me a nervous smile. I grinned back and left to put Kaito back in his bed.

Gin's dog gave me another dirty look as I struggled to lay Kaito down beside his sister. As soon as I managed to detach him from my shirt, he started fussing, nearly waking his sister up. If he woke any one of the children up, they all would wake up and I was too tired to deal with it. I picked Kaito back up and carried him all the way up to the top floor after a brief stop to retrieve my vest. With one hand, I stripped off all my weapons and supplies, tossing them in a pile, before going back down to the basement, moving Kaito's sisters onto the other mattress with Fusō's two older girls. The children under three all had their own cribs. I lay down on the now-empty mattress and fell asleep almost instantly. During the remainder of the night, I was woken four times as the children on the other mattress decided it was too cold with each other and crawled over to curl up against me and stick chilled fingers and toes against my skin.

The other infants were old enough to sleep through the night, thank goodness.

Fusō woke me up coming down the stairs late the next morning. I considered getting up, but eventually decided against it. Instead of going to meet Rin myself, I had sent a shadow clone. It still had another two hours before the memories would cause problems and I wanted to take full advantage of the leisure time. Sometime during the morning, several more very warm bundles had decided my legs made very good pillows.

Fusō crouched next to my head and gently untangled someone's grip on my hair. "Kichiro, you know Natsuki left over an hour ago for training, right?" She said softly. "Before she left, she mentioned you were supposed to be training her today."

"I sent a shadow clone," I mumbled back.

"You're spoiling these children, you know that, right?"

"So?"

She sighed and walked back upstairs. An hour later I decided to get up, and the children woke up with me. I knew Keiko hated it whenever I did it, but I carried all four of the one-year-olds up at once with the liberal use of chakra to make sure they didn't throw themselves off me. They didn't quite have the balance needed to climb the stairs by themselves in search of breakfast. The other four older kids followed me up, half-asleep and refusing to stay in the quickly-chilled bed.

Keiko and Fusō quickly liberated me of two of the one-year-olds and everyone sat around the table for a cold breakfast. Ten minutes later, I finished. Before I could hurry away, Naomi, the middle child in Ise and Fusō's family grabbed my wrist.

"'Chiro-nii?" She pleaded. She was five and although she wasn't as smart as Nagato and Natsuki, if she wanted to, she could join the Academy once she turned six in a month. Unlike the other kids, she had gotten dressed before coming upstairs. I didn't miss the fact she was wearing Natsuki's old training clothes.

"What do you want?" I asked warily.

"Can I come train with you?"

I looked at Fusō for an answer. She looked torn. With Nagato, Minato, and Kushina out on the warfront, she was already worried enough. She didn't know it, but Natsuki would be leaving with me just after Naomi's birthday. While no one thought this war would be quite as bad as the last one, Fusō knew full well that any competent Academy student was promoted during the last war, no matter what age.

I waited too long to answer. "I want to be a ninja too!" Naomi declared. I flinched while Fusō paled. Keiko put an arm around the other woman and guided her into a seat.

"Not today, Naomi. Training is really important right now, and I can't afford to slow the others down to wait for you." I realized what I implied a second too late. Fusō's eyes widened and tears glimmered in her eyes. She stood up and dashed towards me, grabbing my shoulders roughly.

"Please, no," she begged. "Not my babies too!" I couldn't meet her eyes.

"Nagato has already been deployed to Kiri. Minato and Kushina's teams are coming with me to Iwa in a month."

"Minato and Kushina?"

"On the Iwa front already."

She choked back a sob and hugged me tightly. I hugged her back for a moment before pulling away and leaving. Staying to comfort her would only tempt me to go back on my word with the Hokage.

"Why are you crying, Ka-chan?" Naomi asked. "Why is everyone leaving?"

I glanced over my shoulder as Fusō crouched down and wrapped the child in a hug.

"I love you, Ka-chan."

I hurried to retrieve my vest and five minutes later was armed and at the training ground, watching the seven-against-one spar. An odd-looking boy I thought looked incredibly familiar had joined the group. I decided to dispel the shadow clone and find out who he was and how everyone was doing. The memories trickled in.

Rin was a good medic. I intended to have her shadow me for the shift, but it didn't take long before I trusted her to take care of the patients by herself, albeit only with supervision. She made several mistakes, mostly misdiagnosis, but half of them could be attributed to inexperience, and the other half were because she didn't know what to look for. Halfway through the shift, the trauma ward called me in to help with a major surgery. It was an extremely high-level Jōnin who had been undercover for over four years and barely made it back to Konoha alive. Rin hovered at my elbow the entire time, watching avidly. It wasn't until after the surgery and the patient had been moved to recovery that I realized it was the first surgery she ever observed. I was impressed. The first time I saw someone deliberately cut open, I had to leave the room. That privilege had come during my first few months of training, before I had fully accustomed myself to the blood and guts of the profession.

She had the discipline, nature, and potential to be an excellent medic, but she didn't apply herself like she should. After the first hour, unless she was actively treating a patient, her attention would wander. She would stare at air for several minutes at a time before turning back towards what I was trying to explain to her.

Besides that, she was perfectly disciplined, she readily answered questions and most were correct, however, she lacked initiative. I sent her out into the waiting room to drop off several files then take a break, watching her from behind the door. In the waiting room, there was an orphan girl sitting with an obviously dislocated arm.

She spent the entirety of her ten-minute break watching the child and inwardly debating whether to go and help. At the end of her break, she returned.

"You don't look like someone who wants to change anything," I said coldly when she opened the door and returned to the main part of the hospital. She stiffened when she realized I had seen her entire dilemma.

"It's against hospital procedures."

"Only when you're on-duty, not on break!" I barked at her. "You've been here long enough to know the only care orphans get is out of pity. That child is going to sit there until the end of this shift and hope one of the doctors or nurses decide to leave through the main door and has pity on her. I was beginning to think you were different, but I guess I was wrong. I take my job seriously, even if you won't, procedures be damned."

I shouldered past her, not even trying to be gentle. Just as I entered the waiting room, I felt a small hand grab onto my pantleg. "'Chiro-sensei?" Another small girl asked.

I crouched down in front of her. "How can I help you?"

"My brother is sick, could you help?"

"Of course, would you like to show me?"

She grabbed my hand and led me over to an obscure corner of the room where a little boy was hiding underneath a chair, shivering. The room wasn't cold at all. I glanced over my shoulder at Rin, who was watching from the door then turned my back on her and held out my hand to the boy. He wasn't dangerously sick, but it was contagious enough to lay up both him and his sister if it persisted. In short order, I increased his fever until the bug died and made sure the girl wasn't sick either before moving on to the injured girl. I got several disapproving looks from nurses and other patients, but I ignored them, healed her, and sent her on her way.

Rin wouldn't look me in the eye for the rest of the shift. When we got to the training ground, Kakashi was hiding in one of the trees while the odd-looking boy wandered around looking for him.

Much to Kakashi's dismay, I offered to let the boy, whose name I found out to be Maito Gai, train with us for the day. Natsuki was not happy that I seemed to somehow wake up, get dressed and make it to the training ground in the time it took her to run there. Once Obito and Natsuki's teammates arrived, I started them on balance exercises. I was surprised to find out Sakumo didn't train Kakashi the same way he trained me. Kakashi had never tried 'rope-walking'. While everyone else picked it up with surprising ease, Natsuki and Kakashi had difficulties.

To my surprise, it wasn't Obito who commented, it was Shou. "It looks like genius isn't everything, is it now?"

Before I could tell him to shut up, Obito retorted, "Leave them alone, Shou, no one's perfect." He then looked to me, silently asking me if he made the right move. I nodded at him and motioned for him to focus on his own work.

"It seems our resident idiot would know better than anyone," Kakashi snapped back.

"Hatake!" I barked at him. "That was out of line."

"I never said anything untrue," he retorted.

"It was unnecessary, cruel, and inaccurate."

"He's an untalented idiot!"

"You're wrong, Kakashi. His technical mastery of Taijutsu and Ninjutsu potential is significantly better than yours."

"He always loses—"

"Come here."

Kakashi clenched his fists and marched over to meet me in the center of the training ground.

"You learned your father's style, right?"

Kakashi nodded.

"Taijutsu only, attack me."

He scowled and attacked. I slid through the forms for the advanced Uzumaki Taijutsu style. Just like Sakumo's favorite Taijutsu style was a perfect foil for the Uchiha style, the advanced Uzumaki style was the perfect foil for Sakumo's. No matter how fast Kakashi came at me, I kept an average Genin speed and foiled his every attack before retaliating decisively and slamming him face-first into the ground. He tried to switch styles at the last second, but he was too small to throw me off.

Kakashi seethed underneath my foot.

"Do you understand now? You have the cheat code to Obito's entire arsenal, of course he doesn't stand a chance. I strongly advise you to hold your tongue in the future, now get back to training." I let him up and pushed him back towards the rope, his face burning in humiliation. A half hour later when their combined frustration started to affect me, I started the group spar.

While processing the memories, I stayed a moment too long in the tree. Gai was the first to locate me and they nearly managed to get a hit in before I shunshined out of their range.

Natsuki and Obito had formed a damn good team, between the two of them, they could probably take down a mid-level Chuunin. Chōji and Shou worked together, occasionally helping Natsuki and Obito. Rin was doing a decent job playing medic, though she was rather slow in healing and lost focus far easier than I liked. I ducked and dodged around them without much difficulty. They worked against each other just as much as they worked with each other. Kakashi and Gai got in each other's way more than they attacked me, and twice I caught Kakashi attempting to sabotage Obito's performance. It was uncharacteristically immature, but I had the feeling that Kakashi instigated Obito more than anyone wanted to admit. I foiled his attempt and made a note to talk with him later about it.

It took less than a half hour for me to begin feeling the strain. Chakra made up for most of it, but it didn't matter how much chakra I used, my brain was still screaming at me to take it easy.

I pushed myself twenty minutes past that before I ended the spar.

"Hatake and Uzumaki, go back to working on your balance, and alternate between that and flexibility exercises. Uchiha, Nohara, and Maito, you're with me, Akimichi and Aburame, go back to what you were working on yesterday. If you master it, start practicing your katas while sticking to the trees or standing on the water." They split up. Obito looked up at me expectantly while the other two were surprisingly guarded.

"Obito, you're great at the Uchiha-style Taijutsu, but you don't know any other useful styles. Rin, you only know the Academy style, which means you're defenseless. Gai, you've only shown the strong fist. As you've probably seen knowing only a single style helps your mastery, but if leaves you extremely vulnerable, especially to someone who is familiar with countering the style. All three of you need more in your repertoire. I don't have time to teach you an entire style, but I can teach you ways to minimize and use the holes you have."

For Gai, he had a solid understanding of Taijutsu and a natural inclination towards it. He was strong and fast enough to make it count, and I had no doubt he would be a Chuunin by the end of the year, if he received proper training. He practiced diligently, though I knew he was paying close attention when I talked with the other two.

For Rin, I drilled the adaptions to the Academy style which were made specifically for young medics. She was practically learning a new style, but from the odd way her chakra was flowing, I could see she was becoming increasingly stressed and her chakra was caught in a feedback loop between the stress and her stubborn attempt to keep herself perfectly in control.

For Obito, it was the easiest. Once I got the other two started, I had him copy the first kata of the strong fist style with his Sharingan. He repeated it until he could do it without relying on the Sharingan memories. I personally didn't like using the strong fist, but Obito was strong enough that he could pull it off, and it was a good style for him to grow into and use as a backup if his original style proved ineffective against an opponent.

I made sure to minimize their fighting against each other. It was unlikely they would ever come up against an opponent their size and needed all the help they could get against larger opponents.

It only took Obito a half hour to master the first kata to my, admittedly low, standards. Gai made visible improvements whenever I alternated between sparring with him and Rin, however, she hardly made any progress. When she started to regress, I set her to running laps around the training ground until she calmed down. Three hours later, Obito had mastered the first five katas of the style. Kakashi was visibly frustrated throughout the process and I had to send him several sharp looks to keep him focused on his own assignment. From when I set Rin to running, it took her nearly an hour to calm down. I made a note to keep her and Kakashi back after training to solve the various issues.

Once I had gotten the three of them to the point where they just had to keep repeating what they learned until it was a reflex, I switched over to the other four. They had noticeably fewer holes and all three obviously had more consistent and attentive teachers. Considering Natsuki and Kakashi had been training together for more than three years, taught by me, Kushina and Minato, or Sakumo, they had many of the same holes. Natsuki was probably the only person Kakashi didn't mind sharing attention with. Training in a group vindicated Kakashi's feeling of superiority because, as one of the most talented of the lot, unrivaled by anyone but Natsuki, he often got the least attention, which was just as frustrating.

There wasn't much I could do for Shou and Chōji. I wasn't familiar with their training methods and only knew the basics of their family styles, so the best I could do was push them in their mastery of what they knew. At least Kakashi didn't scowl as much at them.

Natsuki wasn't anywhere near as arrogant as she was forceful. She liked getting her way, and except for a handful of people, namely me, Kushina, and Kakashi, who either refused to be cowed or had equally forceful personalities, she nearly always got what she wanted.

If I had a choice, I would have paired Natsuki with Kakashi and Rin with Obito. They would have the easiest times working together. With his Sharingan, Obito could effectively defend Rin long enough for them to escape. Natsuki and Kakashi could probably take on an average Jōnin and come out on top. They had grown up together and knew how to get along. However, putting Kakashi, who was already a major target because of his father, next to Natsuki, who was a viable Bijū host, the remnant of a legendary clan, and a target because of me, Kushina, and Nagato was asking for trouble. Putting Rin and Natsuki together would make them just as much of a target, mostly because of the fact they were girls and I wasn't naïve enough to believe kunoichi had the same respect in combat as their male counterparts, no matter how many times legendary kunoichi put them in their places. In Rin and Natsuki's case, their age made them especially vulnerable.

Putting Obito with Kakashi was a disaster waiting to happen. Obito was stubbornly clinging to his maturity, but I knew he would slip up. The second he did, Kakashi would be on him. I resolved to keep them separated as much as I could. Kakashi's opinion of Rin may not be entirely positive, but she didn't rub him the wrong way and I trusted him to stay professional. Obito and Natsuki had nothing against each other and were friendly enough not to cause problems with each other. Their ideologies meshed better than I expected. Obito's goal in life was to become Hokage, while Natsuki's was to become a kick-ass kunoichi and have one more child than her mother, but they didn't contradict each other, which was more than I expected.

I was mostly certain Natsuki didn't understand how children were made and I had a bad feeling I was going to get dragged into that particular revelation at some point, even though I tried to vacate the area every time the subject of expanding the clan or having children came up, no matter how much Kushina mocked me for it.

After training, I started trying to resolve both Rin and Kakashi's issues as well as building at least a teammate relationship between them. Rin was more than happy to engage Kakashi, even if her motives weren't entirely pure. Getting Kakashi to participate was like pulling teeth, and I had pulled more than a few. Most of them were because some idiot shinobi thought it was a smart idea to embed a small, metal blade in their mouth, or replace a lost or broken tooth with some kind of metal, thus damaging even more teeth.

Daily working on Rin and Kakashi's relationship as teammates steadily bore fruit. Gai had decided he learned more with a fraction of my attention on him than he did with whomever was supposed to teach him and crashed training every day. It took a bit more than two weeks before all of them, save Rin, joined forces to complain that I wasn't teaching them any Ninjutsu. I knew I would have to eventually have to tell them we were all headed off to fight, but I didn't want to say anything so they wouldn't stress over it for longer than they had to.

* * *

 _Author's note: Don't forget to leave a review!_


	71. Chapter 71

I let them complain at me for almost five minutes at the start of training. Between the seven of them, they knew a total of ten jutsu. Except for Obito and Natsuki, none of the rest of them had the reserves to pull off what they wanted to learn and still have energy leftover for anything else. I also learned they had no idea why I was drilling defense and evasion tactics into them.

When I put my hand up, they abruptly stopped complaining. "Tell me, how many of you know exactly why I am your specific sensei?"

Natsuki answered. "Because you're close to our real senseis and you're most likely to continue a consistent training regime."

"Wrong."

Kakashi spoke up next. "You have the skills most of us are likely to specialize in as well as a reputation for being an effective teacher."

"Wrong."

Obito opened his mouth, but instead of speaking, he paled.

"Obito, what do you think?"

"War," he squeaked out, barely audible.

"What do you mean?"

"We're headed out to the war, aren't we?"

"Correct. In fourteen days, I'm being deployed to the Iwa lines and you're all coming with me, even Gai."

"But we're Genin!" Rin protested.

I shrugged. "Powerful jutsu won't help you, not at your level. All of you are too weak. I'm training you so you can survive your tasks, not fight."

"That's why Ka-chan has been upset lately and you won't let Naomi train with us, isn't it?" Natsuki asked, her eyes wide.

"Yes," I responded tersely. Fusō had been almost hovering over Natsuki, holding onto her much more than usual. She was avoiding me, especially when Natsuki wasn't around.

"But wouldn't Naomi be better off if she has more—"

"I'm training Naomi as well, just not with the rest of you, but don't tell Fusō." Late at night, long after everyone had fallen asleep, I worked with Naomi. Sometimes, we worked the entire night in the backyard, mostly on stealth, stamina, and Taijutsu. Naomi wasn't a genius like her two older siblings, but it would take a Jōnin to detect her while she was hiding. I was working with her to make her untraceable. The regime exhausted the girl, considering she had civilian school during the day, but if she was asleep by the time I came back from training, she handled it well. I now had complete control over the security seals, so no one knew we snuck out at night, just that we both seemed to get up ridiculously early and were always found sitting in the living room talking. It was mostly me accelerating her learning and training her to be an information specialist. Instead of paying attention in her civilian classes, she managed to create a crude seal that drained her chakra down to the levels of a medium-sized animal. After scolding her for inattention, I showed her how to refine it to the point where she could use it. It left her exhausted at school but with it in her arsenal, she would be automatically slated for spying, and I would be considered for her handler since I was one of the few people who could understand the techniques she used. Being a part of the clan with stronger genetics, she would be set to graduate by the time she turned eight. We were currently working on a seal that would keep us in communication. It was an abuse of the system, but as a shinobi, I couldn't discourage her from wanting to join the shinobi corps. I could make sure she was never in a position she couldn't handle and under my protection.

One by one, the other kids broke out of their surprised dazes.

"All of you have the day off to process this and do your own training." I closed the discussion. All of them showed significant improvement over the time I'd been training them. Obito, without a doubt, showed the most. I was fairly certain only a handful of his clan members cared about his Sharingan, which nearly broke his heart as his status in the clan remained unchanged. I felt horrible for him. The Sharingan had a significant impact on his learning curve. Within two weeks he had advanced it from a single tomoe in each eye, to two tomoe in his right and three in his left. Except for a medical examination every few days to make sure he wasn't doing himself any harm, I didn't ask him how he managed it and discouraged the others from doing the same.

After the first week of Gai showing up, I wised up to his 'eternal rival' routine with Kakashi, especially when Kakashi wasn't needlessly cruel to Gai like he had become to the rest of the Genin, excepting Natsuki. Although I had to ask the Hokage directly for the story, it turned out he had been on a courier mission with his Genin team and another team when they were ambushed by Kiri ninja. Only he and the other team's leader made it home alive, even though the Kiri ninja were killed. Not only was his entire Genin team slaughtered before anyone could respond, but his father, his only family, had been on the other team and died taking out the Kiri nin about to kill his captain and son. Without the mask of the pseudo-competition with Kakashi, Gai was obviously depressed. Aside from talking to him, there wasn't much I could do. When I offered to help find him another team, he quickly denied the offer. If my analysis was correct, losing another team terrified him. I felt bad for the kid, which warranted another meeting with the Hokage. His reaction was a rare moment when I glimpsed the real toll being Hokage had on the man. Instead of waiting for the Hokage's decision, I offered to take him with me to Iwa. Kakashi didn't hate his guts, so it wouldn't be much of an upset if he joined the team Rin and Kakashi made. Having a buffer between the two would only help.

After their day off, they all threw themselves into training without complaint. I knew they were all terrified. Other young medics would rotate through on occasion to practice healing in combat and improve their defensive skills. Two days before we were set to leave, the Hokage called me to his office.

I thought it was to issue orders.

A dozen other Jōnin had been called in as well. When the Hokage activated the security seals, I could feel my heart pounding. I knew it was bad news.

"Ninety percent of our shinobi on the Iwa front were slaughtered two days ago," the Hokage stated. There was no kinder way to deliver the news. He seemed to age ten years by the end of the sentence. Everyone in the room, all of whom were tested Jōnin, were visibly rattled by the news, the room brimming with unfocused killing intent. "One base in the center of everything was left intact as a message. Everyone here has a Jōnin family member or close acquaintance on that base. All the Chuunin and Genin are being brought back for mental assessments. Since you know them best, I want each of your opinions on whether they should be pulled from the lines." The Hokage went around the room asking each shinobi about whomever they knew and their opinion on how a massacre like that would affect them. The Hokage had to say my name twice before I responded.

"You remember what it's like to lose someone you fought with," I told him in a low voice. "Iwa just made this war personal. Taking Minato off the lines would do more harm than good and you can't separate him from Kushina. I need to get there as soon as possible, do what I can for whomever is left." The Hokage nodded and moved on. When he was done, he dismissed everyone but me and two other Jōnin.

"The three of you will be heading to the lines with men to replenish them. The Jōnin remaining there will be put in charge of various bases. Namikaze Minato is now the commander of the entire front." He tossed a scroll at the other two Jōnin. "These are the lists of those who will be accompanying you. You two are responsible for notifying everyone on your individual lists. You leave in two days. Dismissed. Kichiro, there is another, unrelated matter I need to address with you."

Once the other Jōnin left, I took a seat in one of the chairs. My stomach was extremely unsettled and I was glad I skipped breakfast to answer the summons.

"What's the status of your recovery?"

"I'm nearly back to full capacity. Except for the scarring, I'm fully healed."

"What's the status of Kakashi and the Genin you've been training?"

"I thought they were ready, but in light of this, they're certainly not ready to be in proximity to whatever weapon or shinobi Iwa has that could do that kind of damage."

"It wasn't their regular shinobi or a new weapon; it was a previously minor division called the Explosion Corps. From what I can tell, over peacetime, Iwa funneled a lot of resources into its development. It was nothing more than a sneak attack which blew the bases off the map, a feat they will be hard-pressed to replicate, although I expect they will manage it again before this war is over. There was little to no damage to the surrounding land."

"I've been training them to deal with other shinobi, not explosions."

"They're the least of your concerns right now."

"These were stolen earlier today." He pushed a stack of files towards me. I stood up and sifted through them. The top three were from ANBU headquarters, one of them was the complete, unedited file on me, the other two were random shinobi. The next four were from the Uchiha police station, random case files, all of which were highly classified. The last six were from various departments inside the Hokage tower itself. Only one of them, the file on me, had been tampered with. "The break-in wasn't even detected. It has been confirmed these are the actual documents, taken from their respective storages. Your file had been partially read, namely the analysis of your skills and your medical records, luckily, both of those are out-of-date and inaccurate in official files. The only complete information on you remains on my person at all times." He laid a hand on the center of his chest.

"Who did it?" I asked, rattled.

"She turned herself in an hour after the break-ins, confessing everything without coercion. A Yamanaka verified she was telling the whole truth."

I frowned. Confession or not, the only female with access to my files was Tsunade and she had no reason to break into anywhere, most of the files she could bully the Hokage himself into giving her if she needed them. Whomever it was should have been executed on the spot.

The Hokage sighed and motioned to one of the ANBU. They left and returned a minute later dragging an almost-naked redheaded child by the hair. He threw her down in the middle of the room, hands and feet bound, powerful prisoner seals glowing across her bare skin. Even before she looked up, I knew it was Naomi. The Hokage motioned for the ANBU to release her. She shuddered with choked sobs. The wood of the armrests cracked under my hands as I forced myself to wait for the explanation.

"I know what the law says and there are many lines I'm willing to cross as Hokage, as a shinobi, and in defense of this village. Killing a five-year-old is not one of them, and I can't ask that of any of my shinobi. Aside from pointing out some flaws in village security, and a few damaged prides, no one was harmed by her stunt. The severity of what she's done has been explained to her. As long as it is never repeated and she does not attempt any more stunts involving this village, I will not hold the charges against her. According to the Yamanaka—" Naomi flinched at the name and hugged herself. The Hokage ignored her. "Her primary motive was to get attention and prove she could become a ninja on par with her siblings, there was no malice in her motivations or how she carried out the theft. I'm delaying your departure to Iwa by another day to deal with his issue. The only punishment she will receive from me is that she will be expected to carry out all the duties of a Genin shinobi and follow orders just like one, but she will have none of the privileges, nor be given a hitai-ate. She will also be accompanying you to Iwa. She shattered any trust I could have in her and will be required to earn it back, and as such, I cannot afford to assign a shinobi to supervise her at all times while she is inside of this village, so that responsibility falls to you. The remainder of her punishment is also your responsibility both as a shinobi and her clan head."

It took several minutes for the Hokage's words to sink in.

"If an incident like this ever happens again, I will have the Shitagau placed on her," the Hokage threatened. It was an empty threat. Aside from a handful of notes about manipulating the seal, Uzumaki Mito left him no records on how it worked or how to apply it. Kushina was the only person who knew how to use the seal.

"Understood."

One of the ANBU handed me a thin blanket to wrap around Naomi. I roughly wrapped it around her torso, holding both ends and her arm in my hand and shunshined out of the Hokage's office. I wasn't overly rough as I dragged her through the house and locked her in one of the empty bedrooms, but I made no effort to be gentle. The entire time, she apologized, made promises, pleaded, struggled, and tried to explain, but I blocked her out. Fusō ran out of the kitchen when she heard the ruckus and started to demand an explanation, but I ignored her as well. As soon as I finished sealing the door closed so only I had access, I collapsed against the opposite wall. Fusō tried to break the seal, but I doubted even Kushina could make it through that particular one. Finally, she turned on me. Not trusting myself to respond without getting angry, I stood up and marched into the library to sit down and stare at where the liquor was locked away. I had never touched alcohol before—I had seen firsthand the effects it had, but I had never wanted to be drunk as much as I did in that moment.

"What the hell is going on, Kichiro? Why did you lock my daughter—"

"You're lucky you still have a daughter after the stunt she pulled," I snapped back, instantly regretting it. I had to calm down before I could explain anything.

Fusō paled but grabbed my shoulders and shook me for a moment. "What is going on?"

I grabbed her wrists and pushed her away.

"Kichiro! _Kichiro!_ " She screeched at me, drawing the attention of the rest of the house. I realized it was a Saturday and almost everyone was home.

"Fusō—" Ise came out of the kitchen and caught her before she could grab me and spin me around.

Takeshi ran down the stairs with Kaede at his heels, blocking my way up.

"He just locked Naomi in the empty bedroom!" Fusō exploded. I started to turn around but aborted the movement.

Takeshi must have figured out I was barely in control and stepped aside. I marched past him and Kaede. I barely made it onto the stairs before doubling over with nausea.

"Why did you let him go?" Fusō demanded from the bottom of the stairs.

"He was barely in control!" Takeshi retorted.

"He locked—"

"He's a Jōnin, Fusō, provoking him will only get someone hurt."

"Whatever is going on, let him handle it. He would never lock anyone up for no reason, not after what the Hokage did to him. Whatever happened, it's on Naomi." Kaede snapped.

"She's five!"

"She's going to become a ninja!"

"She hasn't even started training yet! How much trouble could she possibly get into?"

"ENOUGH!" Takeshi bellowed. "This can be straightened out when everyone's tempers have cooled. Fusō, go take a walk, Ise, go with her. Kaede, go help Keiko, there are children crying right now. Everyone else, go, just go."

They scattered. Several people cautiously passed me to go up to the sealing floor.

It took me almost an hour of sitting on the steps to sort through my thoughts. No one bothered me. I had no idea what to do about Naomi. I wanted to leave it at the Hokage's punishment, ANBU wasn't kind when dealing with threats to the village, no matter who they came from. She wouldn't forget the experience and probably developed a healthy fear of ANBU.

Even so, she wanted attention, so I wanted to be sure she didn't get it. The scene made coming in would have the opposite effect.

It was another three hours before I was collected enough to look up.

Fusō glared at me when I walked into the kitchen. I ladled some of the miso soup she just finished for lunch into a bowl and put some rice and raw vegetables on a plate and set it out of the way.

"What happened?" She asked coldly.

"Naomi stole several highly classified documents from various parts of the village."

"She's not a thief."

"She turned herself in and explained the entire thing."

"Why is she locked up?"

"Because she did it all to get attention and I won't tell her what she did was okay by letting you or anyone else fuss over her."

"Your reaction was disproportional. They were just a few files."

"It was my file that is locked in ANBU headquarters. The only person with more clearance than me is the Hokage himself and the Hokage is the only person who can access my file, not even I'm allowed to touch it. Tsunade herself, who is technically the only medic allowed to treat me, has to get the information for my treatment through the Hokage. Also, Naomi did it at the worst possible time, considering everything else that's happened in the past few days."

"How could she possibly get to them? She's _five_! She hasn't even started training yet!"

"I've been training her in stealth for the past month to make sure she didn't get placed in the general Genin corps when she does graduate. She has a seal I helped her refine that eats away her chakra. To a sensor, she would be nothing more than a small animal, if they picked her up at all. The security seals didn't even recognize her."

"How would she even find ANBU headquarters?" Fusōwas desperately trying to tear apart the story, but it was no use.

"My chakra signature, Nagato's, Sakumo's, and Kagami's are all over the place. Anyone familiar enough with all of us can trace the signatures. ANBU headquarters isn't much of a secret, and Nagato and I have probably let slip enough hints that she could navigate it, especially when the genjutsus wouldn't be warping her perception. It's a feat only someone with unlimited access to an ANBU agent could have pulled off and she's had access to two."

"She's _five_!"

"When it comes to ninja, age is only a hallmark of experience, not skill. Her chakra signature is close enough to Nagato's that most people can only tell the difference if they're paying attention. I'll be back." I went to Naomi's closet down in the basement and pulled out a full change of clothes. Whatever she had been wearing before had either been destroyed or dissected beyond reconstruction. The underwear they had given her was several sizes too big. I grabbed an extra blanket off her bed as well.

I slipped back up to the main floor, unnoticed and absolutely silent, opening the door to the room Naomi was locked in. She sat in the corner, wrapped in the too-small blanket and crying. I tossed the clothes down in front of her.

"Do you understand what you did?"

She nodded, shrinking away from the clothes.

"It doesn't matter how skilled you are or how much you want to show off. You scared a lot of people today. You didn't just commit treason, Naomi—"

"I know."

"You terrified people into thinking there was an imminent attack on the village itself. If you thought the ANBU and the Yamanaka were mean and scary, if you were a year or two older, with a lick more experience than you had, or if the breach had been discovered before you turned yourself in, you would not be sitting her right now."

"I know." She wiped her nose on the blanket.

"If you were even alive, you would be sitting in a cold, damp cell in excruciating pain being asked questions you couldn't answer."

"I know!" She shrank even further into the corner.

"It wouldn't just be you in those cells, Naomi. Nagato would be pulled off the lines and thrown in there with you, being asked the exact same questions and tortured. Natsuki would be detained, probably accused of being an accomplice. Your parents would be arrested. Your younger sisters would never have seen them again; civilians don't survive long in ANBU prison. Even Minato and Kushina would have gotten involved because they're your only link to the Military Police."

She could barely hear me over her crying.

"This isn't something I could have taken responsibility for. The best-case scenario would be that I would be charged with negligence. The worst case, I would be considered an accomplice. In three weeks, your whole family might have been dead, but I would be imprisoned until a suitable host for the Kyuubi came along."

"I know," she sobbed, the words garbled.

"Good, that's a start. The Hokage didn't let you go. He made you my responsibility, but I can't stay in the village and watch you. You're coming with me, do you understand?"

She nodded.

"You're going to stay in here and think about it until it's time for us to leave."

She nodded again.

"Put your clothes on and I'll get you something to eat."

"I don't deserve any of it."

"You're right, you don't, but are you really going to start off your punishment by disobeying orders?"

I left. Fusō didn't speak to me as I retrieved the food and poured a large glass of water, bringing it to Naomi's room and leaving it inside the door.

"I'll come back after training," I told her without even looking in her direction.

I closed the door, double checked the seal and left.

Ise stopped me in the hallway. "What is going on?"

"I already talked to Fusō. Naomi stole classified documents, read one of them, and turned herself in. She timed it horribly and her goal was to get attention."

"What is her punishment?"

"She's been given the responsibilities of a shinobi, but not the privileges or recognition. She will be coming to Iwa with me. Those are her official punishments. Aside from saying goodbye when she leaves, she will not have contact with anyone but me."

"She's only five!" He retorted, his voice dangerously hard. "She's too young to be sent off to war."

"She should have been executed on the spot. Excuse me, I have duties to fulfill, like making sure your oldest daughter doesn't die in this war."

After a long battle of wills, he stepped aside.

I shunshined the rest of the way to the training ground.

"You're late!" everyone assembled shouted at me.

"Ninety percent of the ninja on the Iwa front were slaughtered two days ago." I stated. "In three days, we leave to replenish their ranks. Until we arrive, I am your commanding officer. While on the lines, you will ultimately answer to Namikaze Minato, you should all know who he is, and the commanders of the bases. All of you will primarily be carrying messages between bases, I've drilled those procedures into your heads. Any questions?"

No one spoke up, still in shock over my opening sentence.

"Another individual will be coming with us," I continued. "She is not a ranked shinobi, she is not even a Genin, but she is expected to act like one and is to be treated as one. No one is to speak with her unless it is to give or communicate orders or information vital to this mission. These are orders, my orders. Disobey them and you will be punished for insubordination. If she disobeys orders, you are to report straight to me, no matter how minor the offense is, and I will handle her discipline. Does everyone understand?"

They all nodded.

"Good, I want everyone to go home, get all of the mission supplies you think you'll need, pack it, and bring it back here. Be back here in one hour, do not be late."

They scattered. I shunshined to ANBU headquarters, grabbed my bag of gear, swapped out my packed ANBU uniform with my regular uniform, grabbed my haori, and shunshined back. It took me less than five minutes.

I started working on my katas. Fifteen minutes later, Kakashi returned. Shou and Chōji returned within a minute of each other, ten minutes later. Obito arrived five minutes later. Rin and Gai arrived exactly on time. Natsuki was late. I knew she was probably held back by her parents, so I started without her.

* * *

 _Author's note:_ _Thank y'all for all the reviews! This story now has over 700 reviews!_


	72. Chapter 72

"Everyone lay out everything in your bags, if you have storage scrolls, empty them. Also, lay out all the gear you have on your person. Now." I ordered.

I did the same with mine. It took them nearly ten minutes. All of them had overpacked, even Kakashi, who had grabbed one of his father's bags and only exchanged the clothes.

"Everyone separate your weapons from your gear."

"Why?" Gai asked.

"A whole month and you are all _still_ questioning orders. My answer hasn't changed: figure it out yourself or wait and see." When they finished, I walked around and separated anything I didn't see the immediate use of from the essentials.

Just as I finished, Natsuki ran up, trying to explain.

"It's fine," I told her before she could say anything. "I can figure out what happened, I should have warned you. Lay out your stuff and separate your weapons." She did while I worked through why they needed and didn't need what they had. Most of them took my word for it. Kakashi protested everything I called unnecessary.

"But To-san—" Kakashi began for the fifth time.

"Kakashi, your father has been a Jōnin for over twenty years and is almost three times your size. He can carry the extra weight. He can fight with the extra weight. You have neither the skill nor strength to do so!"

"But you—"

"Look at what I'm bringing. Even including my full medic kit, it is less anyone here."

"But you don't need—" Kakashi began.

"No, this is what Sakumo taught me to bring on my missions as a Genin, and unless I have a specific need for other gear, this is all I bring."

"But you're not combat!"

"Neither are you. Out of the seven of you, the only person who can run any kind of support is Natsuki."

"I can—" Kakashi tried to protest, but I cut him off.

"Kakashi, you are on track to becoming a close-combat specialist. You have one jutsu that can be used mid to long range, but it's nowhere near effective enough to make a difference, except getting someone to squish you like an obnoxious bug. Now, unless you can provide a convincing argument for keeping anything I took out, we'll be moving on to weapons."

He backed off.

"Gai, I have never seen you use those nun chucks before, why are you bringing them?"

"To find someone to teach me."

"Can you use them now?"

"No, but—"

"Then leave them. A weapon your enemy knows better is a weapon that will be used against you."

"No."

"Gai—"

"I can't."

"If they have sentimental value, that's even more of a reason to leave them behind."

He was furious, but set them aside.

"Rin, your medic pouch has too much, but we're going to have to go through it later. As for weapons, you need more than that. A brace of kunai isn't going to cut it; I'll go through it with you later. You're making the same mistakes I did when I first set out. Obito, you need more wire, a lot more wire. You're going to be gone for several weeks at the bare minimum. Kakashi, you absolutely suck at that blade, if you try to sneak it into your pack one more time, I'll break it. What I said to Gai applies to you as well. Leave it behind. Shou and Chōji, you need more food." I quickly separated Natsuki's things out. Out of all of them, hers was nearly perfect. She had taken one of my bags, personalized it, but added too much. "Now, I want everyone to look at what each other has, except Rin's. Those are the supplies you will have to work with. Tomorrow, I'm going to ask you individually to list everything your teammates have and who has it, then we're going to go through what Rin has and make sure you're all up to snuff on the medical protocols you're supposed to know."

They walked around to everyone's stuff, memorizing.

"When you're done, everyone's dismissed to individual training except Rin."

After a few minutes, they all cleared out except Natsuki, who waited at the edge of the training ground. After going through Rin's kit and taking out quite a bit, then gave her a list of items to obtain, I dismissed her and recommended that she make herself useful at the hospital. Natsuki ran up as soon as I finished packing away my own things.

"Easy does it," I said as she ran into me, clinging tightly to my waist.

"I'm not going back." She decided.

"Yes, you are, but not right now."

"They kept saying something was my fault, but I didn't know what they were talking about."

"It's okay, it has absolutely nothing to do with you, your parents are angry at me."

"But why? They've never, ever gotten angry with you."

"Every time another one of their children becomes a shinobi, they blame me."

"I don't understand."

I pulled her down to sit across from me. "Imagine your best friend—"

"Kakashi."

"Imagine Kakashi went out on a mission and you couldn't, say, because of an injury that had you retired. How would you feel if he died on that mission?"

"Horrible, I should have been there watching his back."

"Now, a few years later, you have a son. He's the center of your life and you give up everything to make sure he stays safe, but not long after that, he throws away the security you gave him to go prancing off after Kakashi's son to be a shinobi, spends all of his time with the older boy, you rarely even see him, and even then he can't talk about anything he's done, working some of the most dangerous missions there are. How would you feel then?"

"Scared and a little betrayed."

"Now imagine having several more children, all of them paying more attention to Kakashi's son, who doesn't even like the attention, or want them following him around, but still, your children listen to him, they admire him, and it always seems like he's more important. Now how do you feel?"

"Like he's stealing my children, like my kids are betraying me."

"Exactly. Your parents were best friends with mine before they died. They gave up their calling to help people who had no other choice, and a few years later, Nagato runs off to ANBU, when he comes back, he's a murderer, in their eyes, and an identical copy of me. They had no way to understand it was the best way to keep Nagato safe. I was just a kid at the time, they couldn't blame me. Nagato adores you, he played with you every second he could, it was only natural that you grew up to be just like him. But Naomi is now tied up in our messes, and there's no way her sisters won't follow her, they're too close."

"I don't understand."

"Parents protect their kids, that's the way it's supposed to be, but parents can't protect their kids on missions, your parents are losing most of their children to this war. Two of which have no idea what war is like and are barely strong enough to defend themselves."

"But Nagato already lived through a war."

"You and Naomi haven't."

"But Naomi isn't a ninja. She's not trained at all, you banned shinobi practice in front of the little kids."

"That's one of the reasons your parents are mad at me. A month ago, Naomi declared her intention to become a shinobi. I trained her in secret, teaching her the hardest and most unforgiving aspect of shinobi life I knew to try and dissuade her. It had the opposite effect. You and Nagato are frontline fighters, you draw everyone's attention. Naomi only cares about attention from certain people; she doesn't want the glamor of fancy jutsu. She wants to do something unique, she wants the adrenaline rush and she doesn't want to share it. She's comfortable in the background, and I taught her reconnaissance. I made the mistake of assuming she would be like you and Nagato and it bit me in the ass."

"How?"

"She stole files above her clearance level."

"She's the person we're not supposed to talk to, isn't she?"

"Yes."

"But she's my sister."

"I know, I'm sorry. I screwed up and now everyone has to pay for it." I couldn't meet her eye.

"I want to talk to her."

"No."

"Why?"

"What do you want to talk to her about?"

"I want to tell her she's messed up—"

"No. She feels bad enough as it is. She's already been scolded by me, the Hokage himself, and ANBU. I just want you to do as you're told and leave it be."

"But—"

"No buts, there's nothing else to discuss on the matter. Now, I need to know what happened when you went home."

"Ka-chan was crying, so I went to ask her what was wrong and she just exploded at me, screaming things. To-chan tried to calm her down, but he couldn't so he just yelled at me to get out. By the time I remembered what I went home for, I was late."

"I'll have a talk with your parents, okay? Until then, why don't you go stay with Kakashi until I come get you?" I stood up and reached down to help her up.

"No, I want to stay with you." She latched onto my waist.

"Okay, fine."

"Can you shunshin there?"

"Yeah, why?"

"It's funner than walking."

I rolled my eyes but obliged her anyways.

When we got home, I sent Natsuki straight upstairs with all the gear. Ise and Fusō were in the library, everyone else was either in the living room or the basement.

I broke the seal that locked the door and jerked open the door.

"Kichiro!" Ise scolded. "You could just—"

I ignored him. "The both of you are out of line. I know I'm responsible for this whole mess. If you want to take your anger out on me, fine, but you leave the children out of it! Am I clear?"

"Who are you—" Fusō stood up.

"I am the head of this clan! I am also a Jōnin and Natsuki's commander! I am well within my rights under clan law, village law, and shinobi law to do something about this situation, especially when it interferes with her ability to carry out orders!" I hated pulling rank, especially on civilians, but the kids didn't deserve to get dragged into the argument. "Now, if you have a problem, I want it addressed now or hold your peace until I come back. But the two of you know what happens when resentment is allowed to fester."

Both of them went pale and flinched back. I watched Ise's face go from white, to red, to purple with a morbid fascination. Natsuki walked into the room. I turned to tell her to go back upstairs when Ise jumped up. I had never even heard of Ise raising a hand against anyone before, so I didn't even look at him when he marched towards me. Natsuki's horrified expression had me turning back, just as Ise's hands closed around my neck. I had grown a lot since I first met him, but Ise still had several inches and at least fifty pounds on me. With nothing in the vicinity to reflexively catch myself and stunned that the man actually attacked me, I hit the ground flat on my back with the man crushing my neck. When I hit the ground, my wrist ended up caught beneath me. With a sound if silly putty snapping, my elbow popped out of place. It took me a full five seconds to even process the situation.

In ten years as a shinobi, not once had someone attempted to actually strangle me. Strangulation took too long to incapacitate an opponent, so the only time shinobi resorted to it was for mercy killings or as a last resort. If Natsuki wasn't there, if I hadn't spent a month training with Genin, if my right arm wasn't entirely useless, I probably would have killed him before I could think. He slammed my head against the solid wood floor, bellowing incoherently. When he slammed my head against the floor for the second time, I reacted. I reached up with my good arm and touched Ise's forehead, knocking him out. He collapsed on top of me and I rolled him off, coughing.

"You killed him!" Fusō shrieked. Before I could respond, Natsuki stepped over me, bracing herself in the crouch meant to protect medics while healing or otherwise incapacitated. Fusō recoiled.

I tapped Natsuki's leg, telling her to stand down. She hesitated but turned away from her mother and crouched beside me, carefully straightening my injured arm so I could heal it easier.

"He's not dead," I rasped, sitting up.

Natsuki hovered beside me as I doubled over my arm to heal it.

I reached towards her to calm her down but aborted the movement when I realized my hand was shaking. "I'm fine, Natsuki, I'm fine. Please go wait outside the door, close it behind you, don't listen and don't let anyone in." I wasn't going to order her, but I sincerely hoped she obeyed.

She left without another word. I shifted to my knees, woke Ise with a brief touch, stood, and ambled over to a chair. Fusō crouched beside Ise and helped him up.

"What the hell was that about?" I demanded once he regained his feet. My voice wasn't any better than before, so I switched the healing over to my throat.

Ise sat down in a chair halfway across the room while I chose my words with care. I stopped healing so I could concentrate.

"Look, it's not difficult to figure out what you are going through. I'm the child of your dead best friends." They both looked away. "By dumb luck you managed to have five children with shinobi capabilities, two of which are certified geniuses, something unheard of in the Uzumaki clan, especially from civilians. You hate it, anyone in their right mind would. Not only that, but your best friends, who were always just that slightest bit better than you, still have that edge over fifteen years later. You knew the moment each of your children were born that they would end up closer to me than anyone else. I'm their 'cool' older brother, I fix them when they're hurt, better than you ever could, I let them do stunts that would be deadly under anyone else's supervision, and all kids think shinobi are the most exciting things in the world, and other civilian adults don't shun me like they do most shinobi. At least, they didn't until recently."

I let that sink in.

"What you don't realize is that I'm not their parents. I don't get them up in the mornings, feed them, make sure they have clothes on their backs. Most of the time, I'm not even there. I don't hold them when they're upset or put them to sleep at night. I don't chase away the monster in the closet. I can't be their parent because I never had a parent like that until it was too late. I can fix a lot, but I can't fix it when you turn against your own children. Outside of this house, I can protect them from anything: enemy Kage, natural disasters, Bijū, disease, spies, attacking armies. Inside of this house, I can barely do anything because I'm rarely here. I can protect these children from everyone and everything except themselves and you."

"We would never—" Ise began.

"You shouted at Natsuki, you attacked me right in front of her! I just had to explain to her why your anger reflected onto her. I just had to tell her you were just upset and why. But you know what? She doesn't believe me when I tell her you, me, her, Naomi, and the rest of the clan are all victims of the circumstance. Now, I don't know if she ever will listen to me now. You want to know what the worst part is? She'll come around in a week or two, but in a week or two, she's going to virtually be on her own. I'll be working in the medic tents, travelling across the bases, Kushina and Minato will be either patrolling, sleeping, or fighting. Hell, I'm probably going to end up fighting as much as I heal. Naomi will have her own tasks to do and Natsuki will be left with her own thoughts, running between bases delivering messages. She won't even have Kakashi."

They just stared at me, dumbfounded.

"That's my side of this. Yes, I screwed up. I screwed up big time and it was a long time ago and it's catching up to me now. I should have left you in Ame. I'm not sorry for it, but it doesn't change the facts. Whatever you have to say, say it now, because it might be a year or more before you'll get another chance."

"I can't say anything to that, Kichiro," Ise responded. "It seems like selfishness is the root of everything, isn't it?"

I snorted but didn't respond.

"I would like to apologize to Natsuki," Fusō said softly. Ise nodded his agreement.

I nodded. "Fine. I want to be perfectly clear." I looked Ise in the eye. "If you had attacked any other ninja like that, no matter their rank or experience, they would have killed you before you hit the ground. Even Natsuki would have killed you. She almost did. If there's nothing else, I'll send her in to listen. I can't promise you anything except civility."

They agreed, and I stood up. My elbow wasn't healed at all, so I straightened it into a mostly-natural position and walked out of the room. Natsuki was leaning against the door directly outside.

"You were listening," I stated.

She nodded.

"Don't pick a fight and remain respectful. I'll meet you upstairs later tonight."

Her expression hardened.

"Do I have to order you?"

"No."

"Good."

I walked past her. A moment later, she closed the door behind her. I went towards where Naomi was locked in. I deactivated the seal and went inside, closing the door behind me, stepping over the uneaten food. Naomi lay curled in the corner of the room, wrapped in the blanket, sleeping restlessly. She didn't look like she had been crying, which struck me as odd.

I knelt beside her and shook her awake. She woke instantly. When she saw me, she turned her head into her blanket.

"Come on, let's get you washed up," I murmured.

She shook her head.

"Look, kiddo, I'm not going to order you to take care of yourself, but as much as you feel like you don't deserve shit, you're going to survive this war, you might as well make it easy on me, especially since you don't get the easy way out."

Without another word, I picked her up, carrying her out of the room. The hall was empty as I walked her down to the bathroom. Just before I opened the door, Natsuki marched out of the library.

I sighed as she stormed past me and up the stairs. Chasing after her wasn't going to change anything, so I decided to let her cool down before talking to her.

I pushed my way into the bathroom. There was a small tub in the corner of the room, specifically for washing the children. I set her down beside the toilet and turned my back to draw the bath. She went to the toilet, stripped, and climbed into the tub before I could warm the water. Almost immediately, she started shivering. Unfortunately, there was no such thing as a hot water heater yet, and the groundwater never warmed up properly. The onsens operated off elaborate Uzumaki seals, which had been put on the tub, but Naomi knocked my hand away when I tried to touch the seal to heat the water, then stubbornly sat in front of it. I pulled down a clean washcloth, dampened it, and then rubbed the bar of soap onto it before handing her the soapy washcloth.

She tried to start washing herself, but she was shivering too hard. She didn't resist as I put a hand on her shoulder and made her lean forward, warming the water to a comfortable temperature. ANBU didn't mess around with prisoners, no matter how young and they rarely cleaned the interrogation equipment. There were rust stains across her neck, her hips, and around her wrists and ankles.

When they didn't come off with her scrubbing, I took the washcloth and gently rubbed them away.

I held out the bar of soap to her. "Wash your hair, I'm going to get you some clean clothes."

"Ka-chan always does it," she answered in a small voice. "I-I don't know how."

A knot formed in my throat. The child was five. I was there when she was born, hell, I was the first person to hold her. She still liked to hide under my haori when I walked and latch onto my leg to slow me down. She loved it when I walked up the walls with her still attached.

I quickly washed her hair and lifted her out of the tub, wrapping a towel around her. "Stay here," I said softly and hurried upstairs.

I gathered Nagato's old training clothes from when he was in the Academy. They would be big on her, but I would make it work. Her normal clothes were too thin and fragile for regular training. Once she was dressed, I took her outside and handed her two kunai to spar with. She was decent at making things up on the spot, especially considering she barely knew any Taijutsu, but she certainly wasn't doing her best.

"Fight back, Naomi, don't let me bat you around."

She cringed and managed to dodge the next few attacks.

"Naomi!" I barked at her, accidentally cuffing the side of her head with the back of my hand. She had seen the attack coming and I expected her to dodge. She didn't and I barely managed to turn the hit aside to avoid hurting her. She staggered but kept on her feet. "Show me you have what it takes to survive."

She whimpered.

I sighed and stopped the spar, taking a knee in front of her. "You're better than this, Naomi, what's the deal?"

She shook her head.

"Naomi, look at me. What's going on?"

She took a step back and scrubbed at her eyes with her other hand. In the back of my mind, Kushina's voice berated me over letting the girl work through this by herself. I couldn't dismiss the situation, to do so would betray the entire village, but I sure as hell didn't have to leave Naomi entirely alone in dealing with it, especially when it was my fault she was tempted to do what she did to begin with.

"Come here," I said softly, opening my arms. She took an automatic step forward but stopped herself.

"No, no, no, no," She muttered.

"Naomi—" I tried to interrupt, but she stumbled away from me. My stomach churned as she continued to berate herself. To make matters worse, she still had kunai in her hands. While they were blunted for training, they could still cause injury. She nearly took out her own eye, barely missing and nicking her cheek. She fell silent for a moment and touched the blood, looking at the kunai.

"Bad, bad, bad," She chanted, staring at the blades. I wasn't sure what she would do, so I snatched them out of her hands before she could even think of doing anything.

I pocketed the kunai and grabbed Naomi, pulling her into a tight hug. After a few seconds of struggling, she broke down, clinging to me and repeatedly apologizing. I didn't know what to do. The frustration gnawed at my own composure until I bent my head and hid my face in her back. I could feel someone watching from the house.

* * *

 _Author's note: Greetings from Rochester (New York)._ _One of my aunts (I have a HUGE family) volunteered to read this monstrosity, so shoutout to her if she makes it this far_ _!_


	73. Chapter 73

An hour later, she had fallen asleep against me.

When I was absolutely sure she was fast asleep, I picked her up and carried her into the house and up to the third floor. Natsuki lay face up on the mattress in the center of the room, glaring at the ceiling and throwing kunai at the target above her. She didn't even look at me as I laid Naomi down on the other side of the mattress and sat down between them. One of the kunai fell, and she caught it before it could wreak some major havoc to her intestines. I took off my vest and laid it at my feet.

"Minato and Kushina play a game with that target, trying to see who can get the most kunai to stick. Minato always wins, he uses one of the extra prongs in another kunai to drive one deep enough to activate a seal that prevents anything but his kunai from staying in. Kushina doesn't know about the seal and we have a bet on how long it'll take her to figure it out."

Natsuki threw another kunai, which knocked two loose. One fell towards me and I caught it.

"He's is convinced she'll never find out unless someone tells her. I think she'll figure it out once they play on another target. Nagato thinks she already knows and is waiting to change the seal when Minato isn't around." I lay down and Naomi curled against my side.

I wasn't great at making chakra strings, but I was good enough to pull down the four kunai stuck in the target and lower them into Natsuki's hand when she didn't react.

"I'm beginning to think Nagato is right." I said quietly. "People aren't as stupid or close-minded as they first appear. They are fully aware of the problems. They have ulterior motives, they want something. How they go around doing it is debatable, like Kushina trying to get even."

"You're trying to tell me my parents want something, so they're being mean in order to get it."

Her sarcasm would have sounded more appropriate on someone twice her age, but at least she was talking to me. "I'm saying, your parents may not be right in acting the way they are, but they have their reasons."

She scoffed. "Why do you care? I saw what they did to you, I heard what they said. How can you defend them?"

"If I berated and insulted and attacked you right now, would you believe me?"

"No, of course not."

"You would make excuses for me. Maybe I'm stressed. Maybe I don't understand what I'm saying. Maybe you hurt me in some way and didn't realize it."

"Exactly."

"Your parents know better than most civilians what it means to be a ninja, but they still don't _understand_. They know the rules in our world are strict, unforgiving, and often cruel, they've just never seen it play out. Nagato and I have done a good job hiding it from them, but I slipped. I slipped and now they are beginning to understand what my life is really like, what Nagato and Minato and Kushina's life is like, what yours and Naomi's life will be like. They're losing their children to it, they're probably going to lose them all to it."

"It doesn't excuse—"

"No, it doesn't excuse their words or actions, but I still love them and I'll find it in myself to forgive them, one way or another. They're still your parents and no parent deserves to bury a child, they don't deserve the threat of burying a child." I let my words sink in for a moment. "We're leaving in two days. Don't leave angry with them, please."

She didn't respond.

"I'm not going to force you, but I strongly advise it. I know what regret is like and it's not something I would wish on anyone." I flipped onto my stomach and lay my head down to sleep. I woke up that morning with Naomi using the small of my back as a pillow and Natsuki clinging to my arm.

The back of my neck prickled as someone watched from the stairs. The arm Natsuki clung to was stiff and aching.

I shifted Naomi off me without waking her, but the movement roused Natsuki. She sat up and watched me heal the injured arm. I flexed my arm experimentally before standing up and putting on my vest, keeping my back to my watcher and nudging Naomi awake with my foot.

Natsuki glared at whomever it was until I turned her head away. She relented and started to gather her weapons for training.

"Go tell everyone else I want to see them sparring when I get there," I ordered Natsuki. She nodded and took off. "Naomi, take the black bag in the corner and pack another bag just like it, but without any weapons or clothes."

Naomi hurried to do as she was told, valiantly trying to ignore the person watching. I walked up to stand in front of Ise, my arms stiff at my sides.

"You shouldn't be up here," I stated.

"No, I shouldn't but I wanted to see—"

"See what?"

"What's so different?"

"I don't understand."

"Why are you so defensive of this space?"

"It's where we don't have to hide our shit from everyone who doesn't need to or can't know about it. Where we can talk about what we need to and not worry about judgement. Now please leave. I will see you tonight."

He left.

Naomi took five more minutes to copy the bag as instructed. I put two changes of Nagato's old clothes inside of it, as well as a scroll with over a hundred kunai sealed inside of it. "This is the bag you're going to travel with, from now on, I need you to be ready to leave at a moment's notice. War deployments are often moved up by a day or two, so we could be called on at any time."

She nodded.

"Today, you're going to shadow training. I want to see how long you can stay hidden from everyone else and I want you to try and hide from me. I don't care how you position yourself, but do not leave the training ground. Tonight, I want a full report on what happened, as many details as possible. We'll go from there, got it?"

She nodded. I handed her a set of kunai, which she clumsily strapped to her leg. When she finished, I grabbed her arm and shunshined to the edge of the training ground, waiting a moment for her to gather her concentration, and change position. When she positioned herself, I shunshined to the middle of the training field, right in the middle of a melee.

The entire group scattered in alarm.

"Good job, everyone, but faster next time. Rin, you're up first against me, anything goes."

She stepped up and everyone else backed away.

"I want to see your offense first, so send everything you have at me."

She obliged. I kept my feet planted, blocking and deflecting everything she threw at me. She had reverse-engineered part of Tsunade's fighting style over the past month. It was rather impressive and almost exactly what I did to strengthen my muscles and harden my bones for tougher and stronger attacks, as well as defending myself. She was far behind the curve in combat and I was rethinking sending her as a messenger. She would probably be better off stationed at a base and healing.

"This is the third time I've told you this, Rin, connect your attacks, don't give your opponent time to breathe between them. Now, defend yourself."

I attacked at a low Chuunin level. From the first dodge, she was making repeated mistakes and letting attacks through that no genin should have allowed. More than once, I had to pull my strikes at the last second to avoid hurting her. I stopped because it was just painful to watch.

"Next, Gai."

He was much better. He would definitely make Chuunin within the year, or as soon as he got over his dangerous reliance on Taijutsu. Although, he sent some decent Genjutsu at me, for a Genin at least. He needed a consistent teacher who could understand him better than I could, who wasn't biased towards other students, and could focus on teaching him. In other words, not me. During the spar, I noticed him trying, successfully, to copy some of my moves, but it wasn't as effective as he wanted it to be.

"Shou, you're next."

His opening move was an attempt to drain my chakra, which was extremely stupid. He had planted several bugs on me as soon as I announced the spars, but his entire colony couldn't drain enough chakra from me to cause me enough problems that I couldn't beat him in a spar. He was decent at Taijutsu and had a surprising arsenal of fire Ninjutsu, but he didn't throw out anything new. I knew better than to expect them to pull out some kind of new skill. I knew all their fighting styles and their skills inside and out by this point, so I wasn't surprised. However, I did expect him to bring out something spontaneous in a genuine attempt to get the better of me. It was a futile endeavor at his level, but I still expected the attempt.

"Obito."

Obito had grown by leaps and bounds over the month I had to train him. His Sharingan was fully developed and he was well on his way to rivaling Kakashi. He had picked up an entirely new Taijutsu style, the strong fist, and applied it better than I expected. I figured he would make Chuunin in a bit more than a year—as soon as he figured out the idea of maturity.

"Chōji."

The boy was a monster in Ninjutsu, for his age and genetics, and had enough skill in his family's techniques to be competent in Taijutsu. He probably should have already been made Chuunin. If I had another week, I would have gotten him promoted and reassigned.

"Natsuki."

At first, she hardly paid any attention to the match. Her eyes kept drifting towards one of the trees in confusion. It was the tree Naomi was hiding in. She knew someone was there, but probably couldn't figure out who it was. When she finally did focus on me, it nearly caught me off-guard. She was good enough to make me pay attention, but not good enough for me to take her seriously. She was mid-to-high-Chuunin level.

"Kakashi."

He was the same way, although he didn't notice anyone watching. If he did, he gave no outward sign of it. He was a solid Chuunin, and in all honesty, it was demeaning for him to be stuck on a team of Genin.

After, it didn't take long to review the medical procedures and how to assist medic ninja. I forewent testing them on each other's supplies. They all knew better than to not accomplish the tasks I assigned.

"Decent job, everyone. I need to talk to the Hokage today. I want the rest of you to work individually or in pairs for the next six hours then I want you to go home and spend time with your families or rest. All previous orders still stand." I made sure to catch Naomi's eye while I was speaking so she knew she was included. She nodded and changed positions.

I marched off the field, leaving a shadow clone hidden in the trees so I could verify Naomi's report. As soon as everything was set, I shunshined off to the Hokage tower.

I politely waited outside his door since I didn't have an appointment.

"Come in, Kichiro," the Hokage called after a minute.

I pushed open the door.

"You're almost an hour early for the Jōnin briefing."

"I didn't get the memo, but I want to ask you to change Nohara Rin's assignment from messenger to medic assistant, as well as give full command of Naomi to me."

"Why?"

I scowled. "It's not that hard to figure out."

"Humor me."

"Rin's combat abilities aren't up to par. I shudder to think how bad she was before Minato got to her and her improvement under me was not satisfactory. She doesn't train like she's supposed to. As for Naomi, she can hide from most Chuunin and Jōnin. I have to pay attention when Naomi's trying to hide in order to sense her. She's too good at reconnaissance to waste, but she has next to no other skills. I trained her, I know what she can and cannot do and I don't want her put in a position, even by accident, that could kill her. She doesn't deserve that."

"You don't trust Minato-kun?"

"I trust him to do what's best for his troops as a whole. The only person he might give special treatment to is Kushina. I don't want to run the risk he will put the potential gain over the potential loss, especially since Naomi wouldn't be a major loss, I can do her job almost as well if need be—I can brute force my way through."

The Hokage studied me for a minute before sighing. "I can grant your request for Nohara-san, but you're going to have to convince me about Naomi-chan."

"She's five! She had no way to know the impacts of what she did. She understands now but sending her out under general command with only the skills she has is as good as murder."

"Kichiro-kun—" he stopped and took off his hat. I could see the battle gear bulging oddly beneath his robe. He leaned forward. "I understand that you feel strongly about the participation of children in the ninja life. I assure you that I value the young as well, but they are ninja and as such are a tool, just as you yourself are."

I gritted my teeth. He held up a hand to stop my retort.

"I'm not attempting to undermine your personhood or theirs, Kichiro-kun," he placated. "I am aware that some civilians, especially your clan, feel the same way you do. I swear I am not dismissing your opinions out of hand. I promise I am listening when you attempt to defend the children—"

"Your diplomatic bullshit doesn't work on me."

He sighed. "I wondered how long it would take you to fall back into old habits and old arguments."

I froze.

"This is related to the problem I had with Naomi-chan's—infraction. I don't have a choice but to make special allowances for you. I can list a hundred reasons for the amount of leeway you have but in order to maintain order, those special privileges cannot extend to anyone else. That includes children, no matter how righteous your cause is. I can't make special allowances like this for Naomi, especially because of her relation to you."

"She won't be getting off easy, I'll make sure of it."

"She's as good as your sister."

"Minato's as good as my brother, and you know he's going to hand over command of the medic corps to me the second I get there, it's what any commander in his position would do."

"That has nothing to do with—Kichiro-kun, I've given her enough special treatment because of her age."

"Then make her my apprentice. If she's my apprentice, then I'm well within my rights to ask this."

"It doesn't work like that. Sakumo never told you what happened behind the scenes when it came to your insubordination."

I consciously forced my hands to unclench and crossed my arms. "Never mind my situation then. Naomi is _five years old_ , she'll be hazed by our own troops more than she'll be harried by the enemy."

"I can't do that, Kichiro!" He snapped at me. After a moment, his head fell into his hand. "I can't but in my explanation to Minato, I will include your request. If he agrees, fine, but if he thinks Naomi will be more helpful somewhere else, then I won't interfere. Get me a full workup of her skillset by the end of the briefing and I'll send it to Minato with the first deployment."

I nodded and sat down in one of the chairs in front of his desk and took a blank scroll off his desk

"You do that just to bother me, don't you?"

"Do what?"

"You march in here without invitation and make a scene until you get your way or get yourself forcibly removed or get made an example of." He gestured at the paper and the chair. "And when you get your way, you stalk around acting like you own my office with no regard for the chaos you cause."

I said nothing.

He rolled his eyes and I bent over the scroll. I could feel him studying me as I worked.

After taking a deep breath, I did my best to keep my tone perfectly neutral. "If you want to ask me something, go ahead."

"I have many questions for you."

"Then go ahead and ask, I can do two things at once."

He studied me for several more minutes as I detailed the extent of the katas Naomi knew, her level of mastery over them and her ability to apply them in a spar. I was fairly certain Minato would need Kushina's help identifying many of the katas and a few of the jutsu I mentioned, especially since most of Naomi's arsenal, outside of reconnaissance, was exclusive to the Uzumaki clan, and aside from Fūinjutsu, Minato never bothered to learn the alterations to the Academy jutsus that made it easier for Uzumaki, with their above-average reserves and extremely potent chakra, to learn. In fact, since Minato had never even looked at them, even on a theoretical level, no one outside the clan had any experience with them.

There was also the minor problem that Kushina and I were convinced there was something wrong with how we performed them, since we had learned them from scrolls and passed them on, mostly to make it easier for Natsuki, especially when she overpowered the regular beginner jutsus. Ise pointed us in the right direction from what he watched my father practice, but it wasn't enough to ease the feeling that something wasn't quite right.

We needed a properly-trained Uzumaki shinobi to verify it, not that there were any left. If there were, they were either imprisoned or so deeply hidden they didn't get the message Kushina and I spread throughout the elemental nations. The message was that anyone who attempted to steal a child from Konoha would answer to the Kyuubi Jinchuuriki. Any Uzumaki would know where to go and who to ask for. It doubled as a threat to the other nations if they acted on the plans to steal the Uzumaki bloodline which were no doubt in progress.

Kushina and I had several safeguards put in place to increase the chances of a successful rescue in case anything happened. It had taken me three years, but I eventually developed a seal which would defend the younger children from Bijū chakra. If they had contact with it, the seal would turn into a tracking seal keyed to Kushina. It was extremely touchy, and went haywire after the failed invasion, but it worked. During peacetime, I had taken the liberty of tracking down rumors of Uzumaki in hiding. When Uzu was at its peak, right before its destruction, several hundred Uzumaki were always out of the village on business, travelling, or missions. What made its fall so tragic and final was the fact that almost everyone had returned to the village for the seventy-fifth anniversary of the founding of Uzushiogakure. Only a very small handful were absent.

Kushina had combed through the records and accounted for every single Uzumaki. I had no idea how she kept up her training, missions, and made seals at the rate she did, all while going through endless records. Before the invasion, only two adults and six children were unaccounted for. All six children were definitely on the island during the attack. The house five of them lived in had collapsed and no one had dug through the rubble for bodies or potential survivors. The last child had been in the same orphanage as us, and Gin was certain he had seen the child having her throat slit, even if the body had never been recovered. The only people truly missing were the two adults.

Kushina and I had chased down several rumors travelling around, but nothing had come of it.

"Your father was a good ambassador, even without an official title."

"You don't even know who my father was."

"Uzumaki Ryuunosuke."

I stiffened. "When did you figure it out?"

"When you used his name in the negotiations with Iwa ten years ago. Many of your quirks are identical to his, I'm surprised I didn't make the connection sooner."

I didn't respond to that and sped up my writing.

"I knew him, I ran several missions alongside him."

"I'm not interested," I responded coldly.

"You act just like him. Your father didn't respect me either until I proved myself to him, he said: 'I don't care whose spawn or student you are as long as you do your job.' He didn't know I was the Hokage to begin with, but the point still stands."

I rolled up the scroll and tossed it on his desk. "Full report on Naomi's capabilities. What time is the briefing?"

The Hokage sighed. "Noon," he answered. I stood up and left.

I leapt across the rooftops and masked my chakra as I landed behind Naomi. She started as I placed a hand on her shoulder. I was impressed that her control didn't slip at all.

"How are you?" I asked softly, watching Natsuki and Obito locked in a game of Mercy, shinobi-style. It was extremely dangerous, but Rin was watching them carefully. I winced as Natsuki's wrist snapped under the pressure. Rin was on them in an instant and started to heal the bone.

"That's the fourth time she's broken a bone," Naomi murmured to me.

"I'll figure out how to make sure it doesn't cause any problems," I answered.

She nodded and leaned back against me, sliding underneath the Genjutsu that kept me unnoticed by those training in the field. She was exhausted; I was surprised she managed to keep herself hidden for so long. I adjusted the Genjutsu to encompass her, putting my hand on her shoulder.

"Can you figure out what Natsuki is doing wrong? Why are broken bones uncommon among high-level shinobi?"

"Chakra?"

"Be specific."

"I don't know."

"Ninja use chakra to strengthen their bodies, not just their combat abilities. Normally, it's unconscious. Did Natsuki have a Ninjutsu fight or practice a difficult Ninjutsu several times while I was gone?"

Naomi nodded. "Ninjutsu fight with Obito."

"That would have burned through a lot of her chakra and what would normally have gone to strengthening her skeleton is now being redirected into her muscles, leaving her bones weaker than normal."

Naomi nodded, but didn't ask for elaboration.

"Your turn to report," I informed her.

She did a good job of summarizing what happened. When I asked her for more detail, she couldn't give as much as I liked, but it was good enough for most reports.

"You're dismissed, go get some rest," I told her softly.

She didn't move, turning her face against my vest.

"Go back home and talk to your parents, tell them you love them, hug them, and remember that we leave tomorrow."

Reluctantly, she pulled herself off me and dashed away through the streets. I dispelled my shadow clone, verifying her information, and watched them practice. Kakashi was in a ridiculous competition with Gai and I didn't want anything to do with it. Shou and Chōji were working on a chakra control exercise.

I watched one of them accidentally burn themselves and Rin went over to attend to them. By the time she finished, it was time for me to head to the briefing. I made another shadow clone to monitor them and took off.

I made it to the Hokage's office at the last possible second and hurried to my place in the ranks of Jōnin. At first glance, I counted fifteen Jōnin present.

"Five days ago, there was another massacre on the Iwa front. Only the center of command survived the coordinated attack. You all are being sent to command bases and units on that front."

The Hokage continued but I only gave him half my attention, the other half directed to the other Jōnin. Most of them were heavy combat, except four of them. Two were infiltration specialists, the other two were tactical specialists, all four of them had reputations in combat.

I only gave the Hokage the scraps of my attention when he established Minato as commander and reported the status of troops and supplies.

"Uzumaki," the Hokage said sharply. I snapped to attention. "Your group is headed out tonight, sorry for moving up the time. Go halt training and get them rested and ready."

I frowned. If the time was being moved up, he should have told me before. No one was supposed to leave in the middle of a briefing. He was getting rid of me. I didn't have a choice in the matter, it was a direct order I had no grounds to protest. I left. In short order, I gathered up the Genin plus Kakashi, and sent them to say their goodbyes, gather their supplies, and gave them orders to rendezvous on the training ground in two hours.

* * *

 _Author's note: Greetings from St. Louis!_ _I want to thank you all for all the reviews. Some are short and sweet, but a surprising number are long and quite eloquent. They make me so happy. Thank you all so much!_


	74. Chapter 74

Everyone was home as Natsuki, Naomi, and I said goodbye. For the children's sake, we pretended everything was perfectly fine. I had to shunshin the three of us to the training ground to make it on time. Unfortunately, I didn't concentrate hard enough and we landed in thin air. I managed to catch the girls before they landed flat on their faces and covered up my mistake, but it startled all three of us.

I led my charges to the Hokage tower where one of the Jōnin briefed them while the Hokage briefed me independently.

It was mostly a reiteration of Minato's report of what happened and what was left. In the last communication, he noted there was an undetermined number of injured shinobi recovered from the ruins of different bases. They were barely alive, but the medic was confident they would survive until I arrived.

"It would be better if I went ahead carrying Naomi and another Jōnin stayed back with everyone else."

The Hokage shook his head. "Iwa couldn't have wreaked as much damage as they did without a spy feeding them information. Since everyone was accounted for, and none of the survivors had the information Iwa would have needed, not even Kushina, the spy came from the village. In order to avoid sending someone to a front they might be unprepared for, I allow Jōnin to sign up for which front of the war they wish to fight. All the Jōnin who signed up for Iwa are headed there now. One is a traitor, I'm almost certain of it. The Jōnin I put in charge of the bases are all former ANBU and their loyalty is beyond reproach. I can't risk putting those Genin at the mercy of a traitor."

"Does Minato know?"

"Yes, he's the one who figured it out and I'm acting on his suggestion."

"Fine, but they're going to slow me down."

"I want you to push them as hard as you possibly can, force them to travel at Chuunin speeds, they're all capable of it, even the Nohara girl."

"That's too dangerous, they can't react if something goes wrong."

"It'll have to be your job to cover for them, I'm sorry about the stress, but we need you there and I can't spare anyone to take your place with them."

"What if I find someone? There's a young Yamanaka Jōnin who lives down the road from me, he's sixteen, he can take them, I trust him. He can drop them off and run back, or you can keep him on the lines. He's good enough to specialize in interrogation and he can help Minato clean house. He has his heart set on being a Ninjutsu fighter, but it doesn't mitigate what he's capable of."

"Kichiro—"

"People need my help."

He scowled at me. "You're just as difficult as you were before."

"My attitude to you is the only thing that has changed."

"I know that but it doesn't make you any less frustrating."

I didn't respond to that.

"Fine," the Hokage conceded. "Take Naomi with you, she won't be able to keep up otherwise."

I nodded and took off.

(-_-)

Four days later, I landed outside the only undestroyed base. The second my feet hit the ground, I was immobilized by a Nara's shadow jutsu, my tenketsu sealed by an impossibly fast series of Hyuuga strikes, what had to be at least two colonies of Aburame bugs attempting to drain enough of my chakra to weaken me, Naomi was torn off my back, screaming in terror, an impossibly strong shinobi twisted both of my arms behind my back, and a Yamanaka landed in front of me, placed their hand on my forehead and attempted to invade my mind. I had spent enough time around the Yamanaka clan to know how to resist their jutsu.

It worked on a similar principle as a Genjutsu, but it attacked the mind directly instead of the senses via chakra. If there was nothing in my mind for the Yamanaka to latch on to and delve into the rest of my consciousness and memories then their jutsu was practically worthless. A burst of chakra through my unsealed tenketsu blew the Yamanaka backwards and gave me the distraction I needed to cause a massive disruption of the Nara's shadow jutsu and simultaneously repel the Aburame's bugs while unsealing my tenketsu with a filament of Kurama's chakra. Throwing all the chakra focused attacks off took a lot of skill, impeccable timing, and concentration. The shinobi holding my arms had been the least of my worries, but he slammed me into the ground so hard I saw stars. By the time I recovered my bearings, my neck was twisted to the point where he could break it on a whim.

"I yield!" I called out over Naomi's frantic screaming.

"Identification?" The shinobi pinning me demanded.

"My name is Uzumaki Kichiro, medic. Identification number zero-zero-seven-three-zero-nine. Rank: Jōnin. Orders are to report to Namikaze Minato. My companion is Uzumaki Naomi, not yet ranked."

"What is going on out here?" I heard Minato demand angrily.

Naomi's screaming quieted.

"You're not in charge," the shinobi holding me snarled.

He touched the back of my head for a brief second. "It's Kichiro, and I may not have the official documents, but I am the strongest combat Jōnin here, and protocol dictates—"

"Damn protocol! You're just a boy. You have no idea—"

"I'm not as young as I seem, Uchiha-san. I fought in the last war and I live with the man your team just assaulted without provocation. I've verified his identity, now, _release him_."

I was slowly released and stood up without making any sudden movements. The second Naomi was free, she leapt towards me, hitting my stomach at full speed.

"Sorry about that, Nii-san, you're a week early."

"It's fine, I was told there were people who needed my help."

"Yeah, but first, why is Naomi here?"

"You haven't heard yet, have you?"

"Heard what?"

I glanced down at Naomi. "How long until the rest of the Jōnin arrive?"

"They should be here tonight or tomorrow."

"They have the documents explaining everything, for now, she stays with me."

He accepted the explanation with narrowed eyes. After a moment of thought, he took my elbow and guided me through the Genjutsu hiding the base. Naomi clung to my belt as he led us inside.

"Everyone who was supposed to be here has been accounted for, we only found a handful of survivors. Normally, we would have put them out of their misery, but I guessed correctly that you would be sent with the reinforcements because of your experience with Iwa and we need every man we can get."

"Good call," I said as he stopped, presumably outside the room where the injured were laid out. "Who's the worst and where are the supplies?"

"Standard triage procedure, just so you know, Kushina is in there, level two."

I frowned. "How many medics do you have?"

"Only the one here survived. She's been asleep for the past two days from chakra exhaustion. She should be up tomorrow. There's an ANBU here who know a bit more than civilian healing, so she has been doing what she can, but it's extremely limited."

"Which level has the most ninja?"

"Level three."

"Shit, okay, I'll start there. Is anyone here trained as a medic assistant?"

"Only me and Kushina, but she's been unconscious for the past three days and I have to—"

"That's fine, Naomi knows enough. Is there anything else I need to know?"

"There's a lot of unrecovered limbs, so we're going to be sending a number of people home, unless you can regrow legs."

"It's impossible without the hospital's resources, sorry. They're going to have to get treatment last."

"Worth a try. It's not nice in there, Nii-san, are you sure you want to bring Naomi—"

"She'll be fine."

Minato shook his head and opened the door. I went directly in, surveying the patients. "Level two are on the cots, level three are on the floor, and basically everyone else on the base is level one."

"Whenever you have spare time, I'm going to need you in here. Where are the extra supplies, never mind, I see them in the corner. Naomi, I want you to get the washing supplies and start cleaning out wounds of level two patients." I handed her a small stack of paralysis seals. "Use these so you don't get yourself or anyone else killed. Make sure to take them off when you're done." She scurried off while I knelt beside the nearest level three patient.

My most hated wound to heal was a gut wound. I couldn't deny that it was a brutally effective attack, and only extremely skilled medics could heal it without complications more severe than the original injury. Unless the attack hit an artery, it could take up to a week for a shinobi to die from it. It was nothing but torture for the victim and needless cruelty on the part of the victor to not finish them off. Unfortunately, Iwa shinobi had a bad habit of not dealing instant killing blows, which, combined with Konoha's medical prowess, was probably the only reason Konoha came out mostly on top at the end of the previous war.

Naomi worked for a good three hours before she started to exhaust herself. When she started taking a half hour to clean up a single patient, I dismissed her to sit down and rest by the door while I continued to work. Eventually, she fell asleep. I was left undisturbed, unheeding of the time.

When Minato slammed open the door, startling the entire room, I nearly attacked him.

"It's three in the morning! What the hell are you thinking, idiot?" Minato demanded. "You just made a trip from Konoha in half the time it takes most Jōnin!"

"Calm down, you're disturbing the injured," I placated, standing up from the unconscious level three woman I was treating and hurrying towards him. I picked Naomi, who was extremely disoriented and barely awake, up on my way out, closing the door behind us.

"What. Are. You. Doing." Minato growled at me.

"I'm doing my job, Minato."

"It's the middle of the night!"

"What are you doing up?"

"It's my shift!"

"Calm down, okay? Why are you freaking out on me?"

Minato paced until I grabbed his arm. Several half-dressed and fully-armed shinobi gathered on both ends of the hall, watching us.

"You just woke up the entire base, Minato, you better have a damn good reason."

He scowled and held out a scroll so I could read it.

(-_-)

 **WARTIME LEADERSHIP APPOINTMENT**

Appointee: Namikaze Minato 006510

Clearance Level: 006510-Level Black

Rank: S

Appointment: Iwa warfront

Duration: Undetermined

Assignor: Sarutobi Hiruzen, Sandaime Hokage

Delivered by: Uchiha Kagami 000349

Signature of Receipt: Namikaze Minato 006510

Signature of Acceptance:

(-_-)

"What about it?" I asked, confused. I shifted Naomi onto my hip so she'd be easier to hold. She tucked her face into my collar, hiding from the nin surrounding us.

"You knew?" He whispered, sounding betrayed.

"Minato, I have access to any information I want and I'm fairly certain I was the first person the find out about Hokage-sama's decision."

"He's Hokage- _sama_ now, is he?"

"You're out of line, Minato," I warned, tightening my grip on Naomi. She had already fallen asleep against my shoulder.

"I know why she's here."

"I figured you received the message with the assignment."

"She's a damn traitor."

"She's a child, Minato. She didn't understand what she did, but she understands now. She'll serve out her punishment then go home."

"You're protecting her?" He asked, incredulous.

"Minato, what is wrong with you? Why are you like this all of a sudden?"

He stepped forward until our noses almost touched. I noted he was almost an inch taller than me. "I'm not ready for this," he murmured, his lips not moving. I was acutely aware of the shinobi watching. He was terrified, I could see it now

"I wasn't ready for my first command either," I responded so no one but Minato could understand.

"What the hell am I supposed to do?"

"Establish that you're in charge, they'll follow you as soon as you're someone who's strong enough to lead."

"But I'm not—"

"That only proves you are, so calm down, establish you're in charge. Shove me back, give me an order."

"Nii-san—"

"The longer this goes on, the less they'll trust you to lead when they need it. I'll help you, I swear, but you need to establish your authority. Hit me and give me an order. They know I don't step aside for just anyone."

Without warning, he slammed his elbow against my face. Blood dribbled down my upper lip and Minato vanished. A moment later, a hand closed around the back of my neck. I lost consciousness, Naomi falling on top of me.

(-_-)

I woke up lying on a thin mat, my wrist attached to the ground beside my head with a seal. My stomach ached and it felt like someone had kicked me. Naomi curled against my side, hugging my arm. I tried to sit up, but before I moved more than an inch, a familiar person leaned over me and put a hand on my chest.

"Easy does it, kiddo," Kagami admonished.

I relaxed. "What are you doing here?"

"Delivering orders, that's all, then my favorite little kohai decided to get in trouble."

"I didn't mean for him to knock me out."

"Sure, you didn't. I have to go, but there's two things I need to tell you. First, keep Naomi close. Minato let a little too much slip about her and she's going to be seriously hazed. Second, take care of yourself. If not for your sake, for Minato's. You could work through the night as much as you wanted when Sakumo had your back, but now, you don't have someone to cover your ass. I'll see you later."

He didn't give me a chance to respond before vanishing. My wrist was still pinned. It only took a few seconds for me to see it was on a timer. It would release me in about four hours. If I wanted to, I could escape without a problem, but that wasn't the point of the seal.

I was definitely in the commander's room behind what would become Minato's desk. Minato was asleep on another mat several feet away, his hand on the floor, maintaining the seal attaching me to the ground.

I sighed and decided I might as well try to sleep, since it wasn't worth the argument to go back to work. I already treated the critical patients and the rest could probably wait.

Four hours of dozing later, the seal released me. Minato didn't stir, so I carefully picked up Naomi and crept out of the room. She woke up when I set her on her feet to open and close the door. She stumbled after me, rubbing her eyes as I returned to the triage.

I vaguely recognized the young medic kneeling beside one of the level three patients I hadn't gotten to the night before. She looked like she had been crying.

"Naomi, go back to what you were doing yesterday." I ordered and went to talk to the medic. "Are you alright?" I asked cautiously. She jerked her hands back from the patient as if he burned her.

"I'm fine," she murmured, barely audible.

"You did good work with what you had." I reassured her.

"I can't save him," she responded smoothing the young man's hair on his sweaty forehead.

"What happened?"

"Poison. It's slowly stopping his body from processing oxygen. He breathed it in during the fighting, he was protecting me. I blew it away, but it wasn't quick enough, and now I can't fix it."

I put my hand on the man's sternum and scanned his body. Half his lung tissue was dead, asphyxiated; it had been dead for several days. It was a miracle he was still alive at all.

"We were going to get married," she choked out.

My throat closed. They couldn't be older than twenty-one.

"I'm having his baby!" At that she broke down sobbing and clutching his hand. "Please tell me you can do something for him."

The only thing I could do would be to increase the oxygen in his blood so they could have a few minutes to talk, but there was no feasible way to maintain it. "I can hyper-oxygenate his blood and give you a few minutes to talk, but not even I can maintain it for an extended period of time, even if his brain hasn't been too damaged for him to function."

"Do it."

"Saturation of the level needed to wake him will wear off and he will suffocate."

She nodded. "I know."

I put my hand over his mouth and his chest, forcing the cells still alive to work at their maximum potential. Ninja used chakra unconsciously to increase their body's functions, but it was difficult to maintain, and was generally used only in the most desperate situations because when a ninja cut off the improvements, it was like coming down from a drug high, and no medic could mitigate the feeling. It wasn't uncommon for some ninja to get in the most difficult fight of their lives, throw everything in, win the fight, and die on their way home from the backlash. ANBU were notorious for it.

After a few seconds, he blearily opened his eyes. I pulled my hands back and stepped away. Naomi was dutifully focused on her work, but she kept glancing over at me. I motioned for her to focus and turned to another patient. I glanced up when the medic pulled a sheet out and wrapped the shinobi, sealing him in a corpse scroll to be sent home.

She started walking around, waking up the patients I healed the night before, and finishing up the healing. Many of them seemed genuinely surprised to be alive.

I sent Naomi to find food while I worked through meals, easing back in the routine I still remembered from my first mission, careful not to overdo it. I was also a force on the battlefield, should the need arise, so I couldn't afford to exhaust myself. By noon, I had dismissed the other medic. Minato stopped by in the evening to check on my status, but by the glances he kept sending Kushina's cot, I suspected it was just to see if I had finished the level three patients and moved on to the level two. I hadn't, so he left after a minute.

Naomi fell asleep shortly after tracking down a dinner for me.

I worked until midnight before finding a spot in the general sleeping area and lying Naomi on a mat close by. I wasn't extremely tired, but I didn't want to stress Minato out before he acclimated to his position.

(-_-)

Six days later, I finished healing the injured and all the bases on the Iwa front had been cycled and refilled, although the only medics on the entire line was myself and Rin. When I confirmed that the other girl really was pregnant, I told Minato and he immediately sent her back to Konoha. Everything settled into a routine—or what passed as a routine among ninja—after Minato had me dye Naomi's hair black so she could be sent out on reconnaissance missions and not be held for ransom.

As for me, I was sent to wherever the fighting was the heaviest to heal the injured and make sure everyone didn't get slaughtered again.

No one could deny that Kushina was the one of the most powerful ninja on the entire front, only Minato, myself, and another ninja older than the three of us combined had her beat in terms of raw strength. Although, power wasn't everything.

By the time Natsuki was supposed to be sent home from her Genin rotation, she had gotten the required recommendations for Chuunin for her promotion alongside her teammates, Gai, and Obito. Minato was chewed out by Kushina for recommending the three of them, but he stood by his decision and I supported him. Even though they were young, they were ready.

The Hokage sent a team of medics to help, but they never made it and Minato didn't have the resources to investigate, thus couldn't send Rin home. She may have been trained as a combat medic, but she didn't have enough skill to join the battlefield, even though the skill she did have was sorely needed.

I didn't know the details, and I didn't ask, but Iwa somehow regained the Gobi. I faced the new Jinchuuriki three times over the span of six months. Each time I won, he came back stronger, surrounded by more ninja. The Tsuchikage wrongly saw me as the biggest obstacle to winning the war and practically dismissed Minato as a threat, even though the most successful operations were masterminded and led by him while I directed attention elsewhere. I dealt with an assassination attempt at least once a month, sometimes twice. Minato foiled half of them, I wasn't sure how, and I fought myself out of the rest. Over time, I felt myself getting slightly more paranoid, constantly on edge, and sleeping lighter than ever. Minato tried to get me sent back to the village for a week or two, but the Hokage denied the request.

Naomi split her time between helping me when I was off the battlefield and spying on enemy camps. She wasn't the best, but she never got caught, even though she had a few close calls. Every two months, Minato, Kushina, Natsuki, me, and Naomi would meet and share a meal. Once, Nagato was headed to Ame, escorting a diplomat to ask Ame for permission to send teams through the country. It was a rather unpleasant surprise when he literally dropped in on one of our meals, nearly getting himself killed in the process.

With the constant pressure and threat of death, Naomi advanced quickly. I worked with her on academics and meditation in every spare moment so she didn't unbalance her chakra. At the end of the first six months, the Hokage approved Minato's request to send her home and put her through the Academy, although, I was required to place a seal on her and send her back with a few other seals that would ensure she never strayed from the places she was allowed in without a shinobi escort. I sent him three seals, one for the Uzumaki house, one for the Academy, and one for the training ground she would use.

Three months after Naomi went home, Kakashi and the rest of the Chuunin and Genin were sent back, except Rin. They were replaced with two teams of Chuunin. The next six months passed and the fighting gradually escalated. Iwa attempted to bomb us off the face of the earth, twice, but their shinobi were intercepted. Even if we didn't manage to kill them, we forced them to flee and gradually regained the ground we lost after their successful massacre. After three more months of fighting we made it to the border of the Land of Grass. I had a feeling, like déjà vu, of something important I was missing.

I brushed it away and stayed extra-vigilant.

* * *

 _Author's note: Greetings from Milwaukee! School starts tomorrow, so I think now would be a good time to make this announcement. Since I'm graduating from college early, I have a few extra classes to take. Therefore, this is going to have to take a back burner. I'll do my best to update every weekend, but I already know I'm going to forget, especially when things get busy later this fall. After Chapter 83, which was the original end to SOTT, I'm going to pause updating this story until May 2019. I promise that you will get all 101 chapters, but due to schoolwork and life stuff that I know is coming to a head, I'm going to put this on pause and take one thing off my plate for the time being._ _If I have a free day, I will try to put up a chapter or two on the sidestory._

 _Thank you all for your reviews!_


	75. Chapter 75

Minato was a brilliant and brutally effective commander once he settled in to the role. He stayed in the background, unnoticed by anyone but those receiving his orders. Once we regained the lost ground, morale for the Konoha nin increased, and the Iwa nin steadily lost motivation. I wasn't sure how Minato learned to do it, but he carried out a nearly-unstoppable psychological campaign against the Iwa shinobi. After watching the effects firsthand, I never, ever wanted to get on Minato's bad side ever again. With strategic Genjutsu, superior intelligence, better leadership, and an iron control over his troops, it took two months for Minato to push the Iwa shinobi out of the Land of Grass and begin rebuilding the farms, towns, and cities, gaining the goodwill of the majority of the country.

At the same time, the leadership of the land saw Minato as trying to subvert their authority, which caused more political problems for the Hokage than it did for Minato.

I knew Minato had an ulterior motive for placing other shinobi in charge of actual battles, but he refused to give it, he even refused to explain his reasoning to me behind closed doors, though I suspected Kushina knew.

Minato didn't push his advance into Iwa, which was an unpopular decision, which eventually got him called back to Konoha for a week to explain himself. It raised some eyebrows when he left Kushina in charge in his place, but the two of them had enough support that it went unchallenged. He returned at the end of the week with a slightly different strategy, but even more effective. I had almost complete access to his plans and still didn't fully understand his reasoning or goal.

It wasn't until the attempted assassinations against the visible leaders increased that I realized Minato was protecting himself by giving others the recognition. In the span of a week, three platoon captains died from assassination and Minato appointed teams in charge of guarding me, Kushina, and several other prominent leaders. We hated the lack of privacy—the guards were _constantly_ surrounding us, standing over us as we slept, beside us when we pissed, looking over our shoulders as we ate—but after at least a dozen attempted assassinations were foiled, we gritted our teeth and dealt with it. He also sent everyone who could be captured and used against him, excepting me and Kushina, back to Konoha. Even Nagato was regulated to the village. Even if Iwa figured out the game, there wasn't anything they could do to stop him.

Minato maintained his position on the Iwa border for more than two years, steadily weakening Iwa's resolve and leeching their strength.

(-_-)

Tragically, the blowback from the extended campaign exploded in Minato's face. Literally. Iwa mounted an all-or-nothing assault against Konoha that completely blindsided everyone. Minato and most of the older shinobi stayed vigilant for Iwa's retaliation, but almost all the younger, less experienced shinobi inevitably grew complacent. Minato's intelligence network was limited to the shinobi fighting. The Tsuchikage figured it out the limitation and used it to his advantage. He personally spearheaded a veritable battering ram of shinobi to scatter the blockade we had built. Central to the attack was Iwa's Explosion Corps, who were responsible for the two massacres at the beginning of the war. There was no warning.

I wasn't sure if the timing was intentional, but Iwa had every advantage. The central leadership was scattered across the lines, instantly blocking all communication. The attack was in the middle of the day when most shinobi were taking a break in the shade or eating, even those who were on patrol. No protocol had been established for an attack of the scale Iwa managed to generate. They didn't focus on shinobi, they focused on destroying infrastructure. Anyone inside a building died instantly. It was dumb luck I had stepped outside to scold a group of shinobi for slacking off. I might have been able to survive the explosion, but it would have left me helpless.

The shockwave hit my back, throwing me into a tree.

By the time I recovered my bearings, Iwa shinobi were swarming the wreckage, slaughtering survivors, and a shinobi was standing several feet in front of me with a redheaded woman kneeling in front of him and a hand around her neck. It wasn't Kushina, I knew that immediately, but the woman's chakra signature was too close to the chakra signature of one of the orphans, Tamaki. She had to be an Uzumaki and judging from the visible bite marks across her body, she had the same bloodline. I froze when three more Iwa shinobi entered my field of vision holding three redheaded adults. I immediately recognized the man and woman held captive on my right as the couple still unaccounted for after the massacre. The last man on my left was familiar, too familiar—as if I knew him a long time ago—

Before I could brace myself, the block on a significant portion of my memories from Iwa vanished and they all flooded back with a vengeance of pain and fear. At least the collection of scars I earned in Iwa made sense. Iwa shinobi had tortured me in an effort to break the man—my father, Ryuunosuke.

I slowly stood up, clutching my head and barely able to focus through the memories pouring in—they had been blocked, but not completely and the seal hadn't quite been applied properly. Or perhaps someone had tampered with it. I wasn't sure and I didn't care. There were more important problems to focus on. "What do you want?" I asked cautiously, my voice surprisingly steady as the Tsuchikage appeared and took control of my father from the Jōnin who held him.

My father let out a stifled grunt of pain. "Leave us!" He managed before the Tsuchikage clapped a hand over his mouth and started hissing in his ear. Minato would have attacked at speeds which should have been impossible the second he saw himself surrounded. Kushina would have pulled a miracle seal out of her ass and imprisoned everyone present then threatened and bluffed her way out of the situation, most likely with her clan members in hand. Nagato would have removed himself from the situation entirely, if they even managed to catch him. I was the only high-profile Jōnin from Konoha vulnerable to this kind of manipulation. I didn't have an impossible seal on hand. I didn't have the speed, skill, or strength to free the captives. I didn't have a jutsu that would kill or disable the Iwa shinobi and leave the Uzumaki civilians unharmed. I didn't have a hard enough heart, the emotional control, or the long-term thinking necessary to flee. I didn't have any backup.

The Tsuchikage had identified and exploited my biggest weakness, arguably, my only significant weakness with terrifying efficiency.

"He wants you to throw your weapons, supplies, and armor behind you," Ryuunosuke relayed. My sticks and tantō were sealed into the inside of my waistband, I didn't need them for most fights, and I would be just fine without my medic supplies, senbon, and vest.

"I don't take messages," I stalled, my eyes scanning my surroundings in a panic.

"Do as he says, Kichiro-chan," the Tsuchikage answered, grinning. "Ryuunosuke-kun knows exactly what I want." I didn't move.

"I'm just a Genjutsu, they have me imprisoned somewhere else," he said quickly, but even a civilian could tell he was lying. The faintest outline of a potential escape route started to form in my head.

I took a closer look at his chakra. At first glance, it was civilian-level, but when I looked closer, I could see his chakra constantly being drained. Whatever was draining his chakra corrupted his chakra signature, but when I concentrated, I could tell it was definitely close enough to Kushina's to be our father's. The clothes he wore were stained all sorts of disgusting colors and the material had been worn through, but I immediately recognized the decaying remains of Uzu's Jōnin uniform. Most importantly, his hands were free. It was the Tsuchikage's only mistake. His fingers were too mangled to do much more than wiggle, but his hands were free.

I forced a grin onto my face. "I'm genuinely surprised you took the bait," I told the Tsuchikage as I poured out as much killing intent as I could muster, enough to leave the three civilians barely conscious and incapacitate or drive off several younger Iwa shinobi. I tossed my senbon pouch to the side, followed by my medic pouch. "You took the man who escaped from Kiri's highest security prison, brought him here, and didn't even bother to bind his hands."

The amount of killing intent I poured out masked the Genjutsu and the kawarimi that enabled me switch places with my father, no one the wiser. We were close enough in height and weight for the switch to work perfectly. For being a decade out of practice, my father was good. I was immensely relieved when I managed to switch clothes with him as well, leaving him armored and somewhat armed.

"I certainly didn't expect you to give him something to fight for," my father continued for me without missing a beat, catching on impossibly quickly, the Genjutsu altering his voice to match mine. Out of the corner of my eye, I saw a scrap of cloth falling from my hand, with a seal on it in blood. My father may not have had the chakra to activate it, but I did. I snatched it out of the air and spun, pumping my body with as much chakra as I could to increase my speed as I spun and slammed the seal onto the Tsuchikage. It wasn't until I activated it did I realize it was a suicide seal. It was the standard seal meant to burn someone up if they were cornered by the enemy to prevent secrets from being gained from their body, but it was altered to affect my father specifically. It didn't do anything more than singe the Tsuchikage and make my hand tingle, but it provided the distraction needed for my father to pull the tantō out of the seal in my waistband. I had no idea how he could have known it was there, but without hesitation, he killed the Iwa shinobi holding the woman related to Tamaki. At the same time, I flew across the circle meant to trap me and cut off the hands of those holding the last two Uzumaki with chakra scalpels.

I pulled them away, grabbing both their wrists in one hand and reaching for my father and the other woman with the other, someone landed on my shoulders. I didn't feel anything, but I couldn't miss the spray of blood that erupted from my neck. The person on my shoulders flipped backwards and off me, propelling me face-first into the ground. My chakra was making my blood circulate faster, so I cut it off immediately, but I was unconscious before I hit the ground.

(-_-)

Being brought to consciousness while mortally injured was not fun in any way. Having uncontrolled medical chakra coursing through my body and someone holding my jaw closed on someone's hand made everything twice as bad, making me genuinely wonder how much death must hate me.

Only then did I hear the roar of jutsu around me. The ground shifted and rocked underneath me; someone was screaming and four bodies were constantly touching me. My back was firmly pressed against the ground, but I had the distinct sensation I was flying and an amusing string of swearing was being uttered above me.

With the sensation of falling onto beach sand, the flight was halted.

A bright flash of yellow blinded me through my eyelids and whatever space I was cramped in suddenly felt smaller. Words were exchanged above me and after the next flash, the space felt almost empty. Someone crouched beside me, sliding their arms underneath my back and pulling me up against their chest. The gash in my neck may have been closed, but I was too tired, too lethargic from the blood loss to do anything except lay there.

"Please don't die on me, son," the man begged and held my hand tightly in his mangled one. "I just got you back, losing you again would kill me. Tell me: did your sister survive the massacre? Is she as beautiful as your mother? Please wake up, son, please. Damn everything else, open your eyes for me, please." I tried to force my eyes open, but only got a twitch in response. Jutsu roared around us. "I love you, son, I'm not going to leave you or your sister ever again."

A third flash lit up the space. "Come on, we need to go," Minato said above me, his voice low and urgent. He grabbed my wrist.

"No, you fool! You're going to kill us all!" My father shouted, but before anything could happen, I was lying on a wood floor and an explosion made the building shudder.

"Nii-san!" Kushina shrieked in horror the second we landed.

"Kushina!" Minato barked sharply. "I need him back on the battlefield, he's the only person with enough chakra to help me pull this off! Whatever it takes, I need him back. His throat was slit, but it's been patched. He lost a lot of blood and I need him back. Give him a blood transfusion, as much as you can possibly give, it doesn't matter how weak it leaves you, I need a medic with his reserves at my back, it's our only hope."

Someone felt around my arm for a suitable blood vessel. "His blood pressure is too low, I can't find a big enough vein, we'll have to put it through his leg." Kushina tore a hole in the inside of my pantleg, just above my knee, and started searching for a blood vessel.

"Use these seals and take my blood, Kushina-chan, I can't fight anyways." My father volunteered.

"No," Kushina responded sharply. "You don't look like you've ever had proper medical care, much less any training, in years, if ever. I can't risk getting him sick, again. I'm his sister, the best chance he's got. You!" She snapped at someone as she jabbed the needle into my leg. "Get him somewhere secure until I can double check his identity."

Someone pulled him away, "Kushina, Kushina, it's me, Ryuunosuke, your father! Please, he's my son, let me help, I can help!" Everyone did their best to ignore him. Five minutes later, my blood pressure was back up to workable levels. I sat up slowly, still exhausted and slightly shaky, but able to fight. Kushina was slumped against the wall beside me, breathing heavily. I took out the needle from her arm, then my leg and used a bit of medical Ninjutsu to stop the bleeding while keeping a hand on my throat and making sure my neck wasn't going to tear open on its own. At the same time, I checked her vitals.

"You, get her somewhere safer," I ordered a passing Chuunin then Minato grabbed my arm and used Hiraishin to transport us outside.

"I need you to use Shuriken Kage Bunshin no Jutsu on my kunai to scatter them throughout the advancing Iwa army, got it? I'll come back to you when I get disoriented and I need you to heal any damage I take so I can go back out there. None of the survivors are in any condition to mount a defense, I'm the only person left."

I gaped at him. This was where Minato would get his moniker of the 'Yellow Flash'. Like it or not, this would be where Minato would become a legend. At the same time, I knew it could destroy him. Minato may have been the image of a perfect shinobi, but he remembered every kill he made, and each one took a toll on him. I may not have known the full extent of it, but Kushina did, and even though killing didn't bother her as much as it did Minato and I, we were her world and it would affect her just as much. I wondered how long it would be until Minato smiled again as I took the pouch packed with his trademark kunai, the Hiraishin applied to the handles of each and every one.

"I'm going to put a permanent one on you so I can change locations easily." He stepped behind me and put a hand on the back of my neck. He turned me around and frowned. "You don't look too good, here." He pulled off his Chuunin vest and handed it to me. I put it on. He thought for a moment before taking off all his weapons and emptying his pockets, shoving everything at me, almost faster than I could seal them in a storage seal. He took two kunai, tested them in his hands and tied two more to his belt, nodding in satisfaction.

He turned to face the approaching army. I grabbed his arm. "You don't have to kill them all, only enough to wreak havoc. Kill them all and a generation will grow up hating you. Only kill enough that the generation will grow up fearing you."

Minato nodded. I released him and he took off. I threw a single kunai as far as it would go. When it hung at the top of its arc above the Iwa army, I performed the jutsu without a word. The Iwa troops jeered at the rather pathetic attack, but the second the thousands of kunai hit the ground, Minato started.

Watching the Iwa shinobi drop like flies terrified me more than I cared to admit. I put a hand on the seal Minato placed on me, ready to call him back if I saw him having trouble, not that I could even see him. In less than a minute, the advancing army was routed and Minato landed behind me. I immediately put a hand glowing with medical Ninjutsu against his chest and sped up the process of regaining his equilibrium. Before I finished, he grabbed my wrist and transported us both to another battlefield. I stopped counting after the thirtieth time Minato singlehandedly routed the invading army. When he finally finished, I felt more than a little sick.

He landed in front of me, body still tense from battle. A few minor tears in his sleeves and hem of his pants showed exactly how good of a shinobi he was. The only mark on him was a splattered line of blood across the bridge of his nose from when he wasn't quite fast enough to escape the spray of slitting someone's throat.

He grabbed my shoulder and transported us both back to base.

I leaned against the wall and sunk to my knees. I had been fighting, almost constantly, for over three years. I was tired. Minato was even worse off than I was. Everyone watched as he swayed on his feet before collapsing a few steps in front of me, his expression hollow. I crawled over to him and laid both hands on his chest. It wasn't quite a chakra transfusion, but rather a front to make the other ninja think that the Hiraishin had a much greater toll on Minato than it actually did. It also covered up the extreme chakra exhaustion. Luckily, the only people in the room were the elite shinobi, the people in charge. "Minato!" Kushina cried when he barely reacted to her presence. She had managed to partially catch him.

Another shinobi pulled me back. "Uzumaki-san, all three of you need to go home. You weren't ready for this war, it's a miracle you made it as long as you have. Trust us, we can handle the rest."

(-_-)

Seven days later, the three of us made it to the village gates. I didn't even try to look up during the Hokage's debriefing. Minato and Kushina didn't do much better. Minato hadn't spoken a word since he finished massacring the Iwa army. Kushina ended up doing most of the talking.

The Hokage cut the debriefing short, sending us home with an ANBU escort who didn't leave once he noticed the house was almost empty. Only Kaede and the children not yet old enough to go to school were home so the agent took up a post outside the front door. Minato and Kushina went straight upstairs. They needed some time alone. I wandered into the living room where the children were playing.

While we were gone, four more children had been born, three with trademark red hair, and one with a deep auburn.

Kaede shrieked in alarm when I stepped over the threshold. I looked down at myself, belatedly realizing I still wore my father's clothes and looked like I was wearing a frock of blood, crusted to my skin. It was disgusting; I wondered how I wasn't stopped in the street. The clothes were so thin that they were borderline indecent.

"I-I'm sorry," I stammered, standing there frozen. The children stared at me, wide-eyed. They were all too young to remember me. Luckily, the dogs, who were starting to show their age as they lazily milled around the room, recognized me. They didn't approach.

"What that?" One of the toddlers asked.

This startled Kaede out of her shock.

"Questions later. Ken, you're in charge until I get back." She put a hand on my shoulder and steered me out. The door closed behind me and Kaede suddenly grabbed the tail of my shirt. "Where did you get these clothes?" She demanded.

I turned and stared at her, confused.

"This isn't you and Kushina's rendition of Uzu's uniforms," she snapped. "This is the actual uniform."

I nodded.

"Where did you get this?"

"My father," I responded dully.

She frowned and pressed the back of her hand against my forehead then touched the scar on my neck. "Go get cleaned up, I'll get you some clean clothes and make up a bed for you."

"I-I need to talk to Ise."

"He left for his shift ten minutes ago, he'll be back in the morning. You need to clean up and get some rest. Have you showered at all since you left? Don't answer that, I don't want to know." She took my arm and propelled me towards the bathroom, snapping the door closed behind me. I had bathed while I was gone, it was impossible to sneak around while smelling like a sewer after all. Although I had let my beard and hair grow out.

Shaving the rather impressive beard I had grown was irritating but cutting my hair to a more manageable length was even more so. I spent almost twenty minutes scrubbing at the blood under my fingernails and double, triple, quadruple checking there was none left in my hair or around my neck. I was still somewhat embarrassed that I still nicked myself with what passed for razors. If it wasn't for being a medic, I would have dozens of scars on my face just from shaving. It was a long time before the water going down the drain ran clear.

Kaede had left a stack of clothes, the uniform shinobi pants and shirt just inside the door. I put them on without drying off and wandered out of the bathroom, nearly tripping over the auburn-haired girl sitting right outside the door, quietly playing with a rag doll. She looked up at me curiously.

"Tadaima!" A woman called from the front door, her hands filled with groceries. "I—" She broke off when she saw me. "Kichiro-san," she greeted kindly, bowing slightly.

"Okaeri, Hiroko-san," I responded. It was Gin's fiancée, and I assumed she was now his wife, and clearly pregnant to boot.

"I should be the one welcoming you home, brother," She smiled at me, then glanced down at my feet as the girl started to crawl into the bathroom. I picked the girl up and set her on my hip, walking towards the woman intent on trading the child for the groceries.

"Did Kaede leave you with the kids?" She studied me for a moment ignoring my silent offer of help. "You just got back, didn't you?"

I nodded.

"Kaede?" She called past me, but there was no answer. "That woman has no idea how to take care of children. Go into the living room and supervise, please, I need to make lunch. Keep an eye on Hitomi, she likes to wander. Better yet, hold onto her just like that. That child is going to be the death of me, wandering out of the house at the most inconvenient times, thank goodness you caught her this time. Well, move along, lunch won't make itself."

"They're too young to remember me," I reminded her quietly.

"Then introduce yourself. Nagato tells them all sorts of stories about you whenever he's home, they've been looking forward to meeting the legendary Kichiro. Go!" she urged and slipped past me, just as the wail of an infant could be heard from the living room where the children were playing.

I cautiously entered the room and all heads turned towards me, except for the infant wailing in the cradle. I recognized the triplets and Fusō's youngest daughter, but the infant, the two boys, and the girl I was holding had all been born after I left. I closed the door behind me, engaging the latch just out of their reach and set Hitomi on her feet.

"Hello everyone. My name is Kichiro," I said hesitantly and made a beeline towards the crying infant. Of course, it had to be a dirty diaper and not just a cry for attention. I glanced around, looking for the nearest surface I could use as a changing table. Luckily, there was one set up in the corner of the room. I was more than a little unnerved when all the children followed me like a pack of puppies.

"Are you the Kichiro that Nagato and Natsuki and Naomi and Misaki and Yuzu and Gin and Tamaki tells us about?" Fusō's daughter asked.

"Um, yes, I am," I responded.

They exploded with questions.

"Wait, wait, wait, I don't know who you are yet!" I finished up changing the infant's diaper and herded the children to sit around one of the wooden rocking chairs the twin orphans, Kimura and Kyoya, made as part of the carpentry business they opened just before the war started.

Talking with the kids distracted me more than I expected, which was a pleasant surprise. I didn't even notice when I started to gain an audience at the door.

That wasn't exactly true. I wouldn't have made it to Jōnin if I was that oblivious to my surroundings, but the paranoia that had settled into my psyche from over three years of battle didn't insist on making everything a threat. The infant had long since fallen asleep against my chest.

It wasn't until the infant started to stir that the adults huddled just inside the door called for lunch.

Fusō smiled at me, a warmer welcome than I was expecting, and gently lifted the baby from my arms. I stiffened when she reached out to touch my neck. "This is a week old, at best," she murmured softly. "Is it why you were sent home?"

"Among other reasons," I answered.

She nodded. "Are Kushina and Minato home as well?"

"They're upstairs."

"You look ill."

"I'm as fine as can be."

"Tsunade is in town, I'm going to take you to see her after lunch."

I didn't push the goodwill by resisting. I had a feeling Fusō would be furious with me once I got around to telling her I found my father and several other clan members and then failed to announce it right away.

"Kichiro!" Several voices cried from the doorway. I glanced over and stood up as Misaki and Yuzu ran towards me. Fusō stepped out of the way.

"Hey, kiddos," I responded.

"I'm nineteen!" Misaki protested.

"Sucks, you're still short," I put my hand on her head as emphasis, ruffling her expertly done hair, which was nearly as long as Kushina's ankle-length hair.

She scowled but didn't pull away. "I'm not a little kid, you know!"

"Sure," I responded, unconvinced.

"You're never going to get married if you act like that."

"I'm never getting married anyways, but thanks for the thought."

Misaki frowned at me until Yuzu grabbed my hand and pulled me into the dining room where the adults present were working on setting the table and controlling the nearly-rabid toddlers. For the rest of the meal, no one pushed me to engage in the conversation, though I was asked a few questions to which I responded with short, almost-terse answers.

I was the first finished and stood up to wash my plate. The older toddlers brought their plates to the sink a minute later and I washed those as well. I stayed in front of the sink as the table was cleared, methodically washing the dishes.

Normally, I hated chores like any sane individual, but the repetitive motions and the sensation of soap on my hands was oddly cathartic. I noticed how Fusō shunted everyone else out of the kitchen as soon as the heavy work was finished, taking up a place beside me to dry and put away the dishes.

Kushina wandered down at some point and Fusō sat her down and made her eat a decent meal, as well as bring another up to Minato with orders to tell her if he refused to eat it.

I took my time, and shortly before I finished, I felt Tsunade's chakra signature enter the house.

She was accompanied by Tamaki and stopped to talk with Yuzu for a few minutes, both of whom quickly hurried her towards me.

* * *

 _Author's_ note: _I have no doubt that this chapter is probably not as good as I think it is, but even so, it was my favorite to write and I love to reread it. I had this chapter planned since Kichiro became a medic and Ise became a part of the cast. My next favorite chapter is chapter 82, but ya'll are going to have to wait for that one._

 _In response to a plagarism attempt on my story: if anyone wants to use anything from my story in part of their own work or even write their own fanfiction inspired by it, I 100% support the idea as long as you give credit where credit is due. If you're comfortable with it, PM me about it and I'll be sure to review! If it's really, really good, I could even give you a shoutout in an author's note, although I'm not sure anyone even reads these anymore._

 _Thank you all for your reviews and your attention! If you want more, go to my profile and look at the collection of sidestories for SOTT. It's titled "Spirit of the Triage Sidestories." I know, it's not the slightest bit original, but it gets the point across._


	76. Chapter 76

"You have a lot of people worried about you," Tsunade commented as she entered, then closed the door. She studied the seals around the door for a moment then activated the privacy ones.

I continued to wash the last plate for the second time.

"Jiraiya told me about how Iwa used hostages against you, who you found, and what Minato-kun did." She leaned against the door frame.

"It tore Minato up. It messed me up enough that I don't think I can help myself, much less him, and Kushina doesn't quite understand."

Tsunade's strong suit may not have been psychology, but she knew enough to make sure her charges didn't fly off their rockers.

"Minato needs to be benched."

"I'll take care of him later, right now my job is you. Put the plate down and come talk to me, please." Fusō gently pulled the plate from my hands. I took my time walking over to Tsunade and following her to a room empty of everything except a small bed with a worn mattress and fresh sheets. I sat down and focused on my hands as I rubbed my fingernails. They were clean, but my hands still felt as though they were caked in blood. Tsunade knelt beside the bed and wrapped her hands around mine. "Kichiro, focus on me, please."

I looked up at her for a moment and tried to pull my hands back, but she refused to let go. I knew what she was doing. I spearheaded the development of the procedure for treating ninja who spent far too long on the battlefield—I even made several levels to the procedure that accounted for the relative skill of both the medic and the ninja. It was one thing for a Jōnin to receive treatment from a ninja who fought alongside them, it was quite another for them to receive treatment from a stranger or someone whose full abilities were unknown or their trustworthiness untested, especially when using chakra. The ANBU stayed to make sure none of us lost our shit on innocent civilians not so much to give us the security we needed for rest. I wondered if he was still outside, but I didn't check.

"Kichiro, I'm losing you right now, focus on me."

The procedure was extremely time consuming, but it effectively built a decent amount of trust between medic and patient. The health assessment and healing after such deployments were long and often invasive. Only me and one other medic I only met once had the skill to do a full assessment without touching the patient. I may have been capable, but it was too chakra and time-intensive for anyone to effectively use.

"Kichiro!" Tsunade said sharply. My head jerked up. "I need you to focus on me." I forced my attention onto her. She gently rubbed her fingers, saturated with medical Ninjutsu, over my hands, cleaning and healing the nicks and scrapes exacerbated by the soapy water.

"I'm focused now," I responded. She hadn't yet switched from the single ponytail to the two low tiebacks, but her hair was just long enough to fall in her face as she worked. Methodically, she shifted the focus of her healing to my forearms, upper arms, then shoulders, rambling about a new treatment she devised to treat head injuries. It was interesting enough to keep most of my attention, but I kept glancing at Fusō, who stood anxiously in the doorway, watching carefully.

"Lie down, please, Kichiro," Tsunade said. I lay down on my back so she didn't have tense muscles to work through. She checked and triple-checked my neck to make sure everything healed properly. "I'm going to make you fall asleep, Kichiro, is that okay?" She asked.

"That's fine," I answered. She put her thumbs on my temples. Normally, medics used a sharp burst of chakra on the back of the neck to stem the connection between the senses and the brain. It was extremely effective with the only side effect being a bit of disorientation upon waking up. It basically told the brain that the body was asleep, tricking it into falling asleep as well. It could be ended at any time, but never lasted more than a few hours. The other way, which I invented, was to manipulate the chemicals in the brain until it fell asleep on its own. Tsunade used the second method, which was probably for the best. I had developed a habit of storing up the chemicals in question so I could stay alert on progressively less sleep. The other jutsu would have woken my body up no matter what, but this way, I would be asleep for however long my body needed, there was little choice in the matter.

(-_-)

"You should get something to eat," was the first thing I heard upon waking up. It took me a moment, but I recognized Ise's voice.

"No, I'll wait here until he wakes up, thank you." The second man's voice was familiar, but I couldn't quite place it.

"He'll still be here when you get back."

"I already missed most of his life. I'm not going to miss any more of it."

"Ryuu—"

"He barely recognized me, Ise. He may have known who I was but—"

" _I_ didn't recognize you! He was barely a year old the last time he saw you, it's a miracle he remembers as much about you as he does, most children wouldn't remember anything."

Ise didn't know what happened in Iwa. My father didn't enlighten him. "Kushina—"

"She was an infant at the time. Kichiro barely told her anything about you or Midori, he didn't want her pining after information no one could give or relationships she could never have."

"It wasn't his decision—"

"It was his decision, you were _dead_ , Ryuu, Iwa killed you and until now, you stayed dead. Your wife, your children, and your friends buried you and mourned you. Your children lived in an orphanage for five years after your wife died, as much as those women cared about them, they drew the line at replacing the children's parents. Kichiro raised his sister and he did a damn good job."

"I should have been there for him."

"You're here now."

"I barely know him."

"And I do. He would never resent you for circumstances out of your control."

"You have no idea what happened—"

"I know enough. He's certainly forgiven you for any mistakes you've made and whatever he hasn't forgiven you for, he'll forgive you very soon. This guilt will do you no good; it will hurt him more than it's hurting you." Ise's voice lowered and his tone became even more sincere, if such a thing was possible. "He's strong, Ryuu, stronger than both of us, but he needs someone who understands. The shinobi here weren't raised like you were or trained the same way. The way things were done on Uzu stuck with him. Kushina and my children were young enough not to know any better, but he wasn't. Even after more than a decade, it still hurts and confuses him. You can still help him, you can still be the father he never thought he could have." My father didn't respond. "I'll get you something to eat."

The door snapped shut and I flinched at the noise.

"Kichiro-kun?" My father said softly, squeezing my hand. I opened my eyes and saw him sitting on the bed beside me.

I sat up, but didn't let go of his hand, I reached up to rub my eyes, but stopped when I noticed the flimsy splint on my wrist. "What's this?" I asked dumbly.

"You broke your wrist several weeks ago, but you were either under too much pressure or not paying attention because it healed wrong. The medic who treated you said she had to re-break it but decided against wasting chakra on fully healing it since you're going to be stuck in the village for several weeks anyways."

"Tsunade lied to you."

"Pardon?"

"I never broke my wrist and I certainly wasn't negligent enough to heal it improperly if I had. She only said it was broke—maybe even broke it—to keep me from training and to make sure I'm not called out on emergency missions."

"But you're a medic," he deadpanned.

I smirked at him. "I'm also good enough at Fūinjutsu that I don't even need chakra to take off a chakra suppression tag that I created in the first place. I also live in a house full of masters who could remove it with a few strokes of a brush if I asked. It didn't stop her from putting the seal on me anyways to mimic chakra exhaustion. It keeps me off the reserve corps for as long as I can tolerate the seal."

"But why?"

"To make sure I would be here when you arrived."

He didn't have a response to that. After a short silence, he spoke. "You remember what happened when we were both imprisoned in Iwa, don't you?"

I flinched and nodded.

"I'm sorry."

My eyes burned as I nodded that I understood. The memories were fuzzy, corrupted from being suppressed for so long, but I knew what happened. Iwa wanted Uzumaki secrets, namely, Fūinjutsu. Somehow, my father managed to place a seal on each of the Uzumaki imprisoned with him that prevented them from sharing. He knew he could handle the torture—he'd faced it before. When nothing else worked, the Tsuchikage somehow managed to figure out our relationship and imprison me as part of the temporary treaty to leverage against him, but it didn't work. They tortured me to get to him. They got under his skin, made me scream and scream while he watched, begging them to stop, doing his best to comfort and reassure me—

Even after all of that, he gave them nothing, and when they let their guard down in frustration, nearly escaped. He would have made it too, if it wasn't for him dragging me along as well. Iwa deemed it too much of a risk to have us in the same room afterwards. Only then did the torture end.

My father jarred me out of my memories when he reached forward and pulled me against him for a long time, running his mangled fingers through my hair, refusing to let go, lest I disappear. I wrapped both my arms around his waist and held him just as tightly. Too soon, he let me go. I had to force myself to pull back.

I didn't have anything to say, so I crossed my legs underneath the covers. He turned and mimicked me, letting go of my hands and folding his in his lap. His fingers were nearly useless. The silence turned awkward. "I-I can fix your hands," I stammered to break the silence. "It's not hard, I've done it plenty of times before—it's the only reason Tsunade still has a ninja career, although all the others retired anyways. Her case was much worse than most because the chakra pathways and muscles were completely mutilated but yours are still mostly intact, just severed—that was really clever by the way how you managed it because they should have reattached on their own but didn't. The rest of the damage is to the bones, which are easy to heal; it's one of the first things I learned to do. I just have to rebreak and heal them. It won't hurt, I swear. I used to sever the nerves and reattach them, but I figured out a better way a while ago that doesn't cause any damage, but it takes longer. I suppose the explanation wouldn't make much sense to you. Anyway, all I have to do is rebreak the bone and realign and rejuvenate the damaged nerves, maybe fix a few blood vessels and rebuild the muscles." I rambled.

He didn't say anything.

"If you don't want me to, it's fine. I-I don't know what I was thinking—I'm sorry, I—"

"Don't apologize, it's fine. I haven't been able to use my hands properly since before you were born, so I never thought about it."

I wasn't sure if he was just commenting or giving me permission.

"I learned a long time ago how to fight with these hands—I used to put a Genjutsu on them whenever I walked around Uzushiogakure. Ise never noticed before, he thinks this happened in Iwa."

"I know, I have your medical records from Uzu."

"I see."

I flinched.

"Have at it, I'm curious to see what you can do." He held his hands out.

When I took them, I noticed he was shaky with weakness but didn't comment. To be perfectly honest, I showed off. It took longer than it should have because I as overly cautious not to cause him any pain or discomfort, but an hour later, his hands were fully healed. They didn't look quite normal because the bit of muscle he had was extremely lopsided, but his fingers were back to full working order, and in time, the muscles that went unused for so long would be retrained.

When the medical chakra faded, he was smiling. It was an odd, unused expression on his face, but it made me smile as well. I started to pull my hands away, but he caught my fingers just as quick, closing his eyes and enjoying the sensation. While I was healing, I noticed self-inflicted scars across the palms of his hands where he had destroyed most of the nerves to his fingers, presumably so he didn't have to feel the mutilation, unnerving his captors and giving him a small break from the torture. I took extra care to heal the nerves perfectly, but I didn't remove the scar, it was a testament to his fortitude.

One hand went down to the bed, running his fingers along the bedcovers, fingering a snag for a moment before starting to fidget with his civilian-cut clothes, tying and untying a loose knot in the end of his cloth belt. "I didn't know medics could—" He broke off, then reached forward and drew me into a hug. Somehow, it was different to be hugged by a father, even though I barely knew him.

I didn't say anything, holding on for just a second longer than he did, unwilling to let go. I didn't want to admit it to myself, but a father, a real father who loved me, cared for me, and wasn't ashamed to show it, was something I always wanted. I was terrified it was nothing more than a dream, that he would disappear as soon as I looked away. "Medics can do a lot more than they could ten years ago."

"I was told a lot of the advances were because of you."

I shrugged, not responding.

"I'm proud of you, son."

"Have you seen Kushina yet?"

He nodded. "She and the blond boy—"

"Minato," I corrected.

"She and Minato barricaded themselves upstairs."

"They do that a lot, upstairs is a safe zone for us, there are a lot of things we just can't do or say around children and civilians—"

"You're still children yourself."

I looked away. "I haven't been a kid for a long time, neither has Kushina. Besides, I actually am an adult now."

There just wasn't anything to say to that. After a while, he spoke. "You still babble nonsense in your sleep."

I frowned, confused.

"When you were a baby, you used to babble nonsense during your dreams. You still do."

"That's embarrassing." No one ever mentioned I talked in my sleep.

"Na-chan, I mean, Kushina-chan said you almost stopped after—after Uzu."

Another awkward silence.

"I met Hatake-san and his son."

"Sakumo didn't threaten you, did he?"

"He did, actually." My father chuckled. "I first met him when he was a pipsqueak Genin waving around a bokken and picking fights with everyone he met. I was a Genin too, but Uzu Genin were a hell of a lot stronger the Konoha Genin."

My head shot up at that. "Really? But I thought—"

"The minimum requirements were a guide, nothing more, each sensei had their own list of requirements to add to it, depending on the student's talent and interest in different aspects of shinobi life."

Even though it took a little bit of effort to sense family members, using a jutsu in my vicinity would get someone noticed in a heartbeat. Someone was hiding outside the door. My father immediately picked up on my shift in attention.

"Come in, Naomi," I said.

The door slid open and she dropped the jutsu.

"You know better than to listen at the door."

"'M sorry 'Chiro-nii, but I just—" She looked at my father curiously and climbed up on the bed beside me, ducking under my arm. "Nii-chan just got home, he asked me to tell you."

"Anything else?"

She shook her head.

"You're Ise's daughter, aren't you?" My father asked curiously.

Naomi glanced at me uncertainly.

I answered for her. "Yes, she's his third child."

"Out of—?"

I winced and quickly counted in my head. "He has seven kids now."

He frowned. "How old is the youngest?"

"Three months," Naomi answered.

My father looked confused. "But Fusō is at least forty—" He trailed off.

Naomi winced. "Don't let Ka-chan hear you say that."

"Hear you say what?" Fusō asked from the door.

"Nothing!" My father said far too quickly to be natural. "It was never said!"

"Naomi, your brother asked you to give a message, not start a conversation. He said he had other things for you to do, please listen to him."

"Yes, Ka-chan," she responded and hurried off obediently.

My father frowned. "She's not even ten—what could she possibly do?"

"Probably run errands, Nagato most likely has a mission soon."

"No," Fusō corrected, "Since you and Natsuki are home for a little while, his commander sent him home. He's been on nonstop missions as long as you have been on the lines."

I scowled. "Did he change commanders because I talked to—"

"ANBU took Iwa's hit just as hard from what I can tell. They're running short-staffed. I'm fairly certain Nagato hasn't seen a medic—"

"If he—I need to go," I said, standing up. My father grabbed the back of my shirt as Fusō put a hand on the wall and activated the room's seals. "What are you doing?" I growled at Fusō. That wasn't an Uzumaki seal. Although my father was making a genuine attempt to hold me back, his grip didn't ever require a thought to break.

"Tsunade-sama said to keep you here."

"You can't keep me here with just that."

"No, but Nagato can, that's another reason he's here."

I gritted my teeth. "Under whose orders?"

No one answered.

I jerked out of my father's grasp and put my hand over hers, purposefully using corrosive chakra to degrade the seal at the same time she strengthened it. Even with most of my chakra bound up in Tsunade's seal, I had much more than her. It was only a matter of time before she gave up. I could feel her chakra rapidly draining. She looked me in the eye, daring me to see how far she would go.

When her knees started to shake, I knew she would collapse before she yielded. I yanked my hand off the seal and turned my back, pacing the room and ignoring the stabbing pain in my ankle. I must have accidentally kicked the bedframe. When I glanced at the bed, one foot was somewhat bent.

"Why?" I demanded. Before she could respond, Nagato appeared in the doorway and entered.

"What the hell is going on?" He demanded.

"Why am I not allowed to leave?"

Nagato crossed his arms. "Classified."

I glanced at Fusō, who looked away, then at my father, who was just as confused as I was. "I have clearance."

"Not for this."

"I have access to everything. What could possibly be hidden specifically from me?"

Nagato didn't budge.

"Who classified it? The Hokage? Sakumo? Kagami?" Nagato didn't react.

"The Uchiha?" My father asked. "Isn't he dead?"

"No. It's a long story I'll tell you later." I frowned thinking of the people Nagato listened to instead of me. The list was already exhausted. "Kushina?" I guessed, grasping at straws.

To my surprise, he reacted. I knew it was only a matter of time before Minato hid something from me, if he hadn't already, but I never expected Kushina to go to any lengths to keep me in the dark about something. I had absolutely no idea what it could possibly be, other than it had to do with me.

"I want to talk to her."

Nagato didn't move.

I grabbed the front of his shirt. "I will threaten whatever I have to—"

"You would never follow through on any threat that would hurt me, Nii-san." He called my bluff.

I let go of him and crossed my arms.

"Please, just stay here," Nagato begged. "Be patient."

"Why?" I snapped.

He didn't answer.

"You can't keep me here."

"I will if I have to, not even you can break a Genjutsu cast by the Rinnegan." He put his hands up in the serpent hand seal. I honestly couldn't tell if he was bluffing or not.

I decided to call it and pushed past him. He grabbed my wrist and spun me back around to face him. I tried to close my eyes, but before I could, I caught a glimpse of his. My vision went dark and sound was distorted, as if I was deep under water. I put my hands together to try and dispel the Genjutsu, but it didn't even waver. It may have been nothing but a sensory deprivation Genjutsu, but when it was cast by Nagato, it was extremely powerful, even throwing off my ability to sense chakra. What little I could sense was distorted and unrecognizable.

There was a sound behind me, like a footstep. I spun around in alarm, lashing out. Someone caught my wrist, the one in the splint. I grabbed them in return, jerking them towards me and trying to take them down. The splint broke. Several people surrounding me started shouting and panic closed my throat. In the back of my mind, a small voice reminded me I was home and safe, but it was quickly drowned out as more people entered the room. I may not have been able to identify them, but I could count. Two powerful chakra signatures surrounded me, quickly followed by a weaker one, all shouting as I grappled with another chakra signature that rivalled my own. I burned off the chakra binding seal Tsunade left.

Someone tried to put a paralysis tag on my back, which I burned away before they could activate and threw the slightly smaller person I was wrestling towards them. The shouting grew more frantic and several hands grabbed me at once. A smaller set of hands wrapped something around my ankles. I managed to free my left leg before it tightened, stepping down on one of the hands. I could have broken it, but the hand was too small to be anything but a child's, so I attached it to the sole of my foot and kicked the body towards the person who was about to immobilize my right arm. At the same time, another, even smaller body, latched on to my other leg.

This severely hindered my ability to move. Someone tried to put me into a full nelson, which I barely avoided. As I twisted out, the child I threw leapt onto my back and wrapped both arms around my neck and their legs around my torso, constricting my ability to draw in air.

I tried to replace myself with someone, but the jutsu failed. In that moment of distraction, two of the giant chakra signatures managed to catch my arms and twist them, forcing me to bend backwards and entangling my fingers in their own to stop me from forming hand seals and interrupting any chakra I tried to utilize through my hands. Another extremely small chakra signature darted out from the edges of the room and barreled into my free leg, collapsing my knee and sending me crashing down onto my back, the child on my back underneath me.

The shouting faded to grunts and the body that caused me to fall latched on to my free leg before I could do anything. I strained as hard as I could against the people holding my arms, slowly crushing the small body beneath me. I felt bones begin to crack under the pressure.

I jerked and struggled as the third large chakra signature carefully switched places with the person holding down my right arm. No matter how hard I struggled, I couldn't budge. I tried to kick my legs, but their grips were just as tight, and they were impossibly heavy for their size. The two people on my arm finished switching places and the free person pulled up my shirt, inching it out from under the legs of the child beneath me. They briefly checked on the Kyuubi's seal before drawing one on my sternum.

I tried to burn it away, but the more chakra I pushed into it, the stronger it got. Too late, I realized it wasn't a seal at all. I expended most of my reserves into nothing. I struggled fruitlessly, waiting. There was an argument above me.

After several minutes, it was over, and the child constricting my breathing slowly released me and was slid out from beneath my back. I couldn't bear being imprisoned again. As soon as I was free of her grip, I tried to slam my head back and knock myself out, but the twerp managed to catch my head before I could hurt myself.

I stuck out my tongue but as I bit down, someone forced their hand into my mouth and my teeth lodged in the boniest part of the child's hand. There wouldn't be anywhere near enough blood to suffocate myself with. Before I could spit out the hand and try again, the child grabbed my jaw, forcing my mouth to remain clamped over the hand. The argument resumed.

After several minutes and accidentally breaking at least two of my fingers trying to twist myself free, the Genjutsu was lifted. Kushina leaned over me. I used my chakra sense to look around. Minato was holding down my left arm and Nagato was on my right. It was Natsuki's hand in my mouth and she had a firm grip on my head. Naomi lay on top of my right leg with chakra weights attached to her torso. The brat who knocked me down was Noriko, who I assumed had just started at the Academy and was also weighed down with chakra weights.

I slowly relaxed, the panic fading. When I tried to look up at Natsuki, she curled around my head, hiding her face beside my ear. I remembered the sensation of bones cracking beneath me as the hair beside my temple dampened. Kushina slowly freed my jaw and pulled Natsuki's hand out of my mouth.

I could feel people watching from the doorway. Kushina stood up and shut it in their faces. She then released the weights around the girls pinning my legs, picking the two up and setting them on the bed. They hugged each other.

Nagato slowly released my arm and when I didn't make any sudden movements, Minato followed. Out of everyone, Natsuki and I were the only ones to take any damage. I would have bruises all over my body later from being wrestled to the ground and held there. Natsuki had several fractured bones.

I pulled myself free and carefully laid Natsuki on her back, my hands glowing with medical chakra and trembling slightly from fatigue and exertion.

I healed her ribs first, apologizing the entire time. Her eyes were closed tightly in pain. I should have left it there, fully aware that if I used much more chakra, I would exhaust myself, but I ignored my sense and continued to heal her. The pressure had fractured her pelvis in three places and her ilium crumpled. When I reached for her hand, Nagato stopped me and Minato helped him drag me back while Kushina took my place. They set me down on the bed.

Nagato turned back towards Natsuki while Minato stopped me from following. "You have the choice to lie down and rest or I will permanently seal your chakra and knock you out," he threatened. I relaxed, but I didn't lie down. Minato knew I would stand up the moment he turned his back, so he motioned for Naomi and Noriko to watch me. Naomi parked herself in my lap while Noriko wrapped herself around my left arm.

As soon as Minato turned his back, I checked both girls for injuries with a small pulse of chakra. They were fine, just a few bumps from hitting the floor.

Natsuki finally stood up with help from Nagato. Once Minato made sure everything was fine, he returned to me, checking my pulse.

"Kushina, he has chakra exhaustion, can you—"

She pushed him out of the way, taking my hands in hers. "His hands are cold, go get Tsunade, we shouldn't have let him heal Natsuki. Nagato, stay with her. Naomi, Noriko, stay with him, keep him warm and make sure he doesn't stop breathing and his heart keeps breathing." As Minato left, my father pushed his way in.

"I can help, I know how—"

Kushina stood up to stop him. "No, you can't help, even I can tell you're sick, you should be in bed right now."

"I'm not—"

"You are sick. Kichiro gets sick often enough as it is, he doesn't need anyone to help him along."

"But—"

"The only reason you're not locked in a hospital room is because there are three doctors in this house. If you start being uncooperative, I will personally escort you to the hospital and you will stay there and don't you dare say I can't. My combat stats are three times better than yours ever were and you've spent the past fifteen years imprisoned. Go ahead and test me right now."

He backed down but didn't leave the room. A yellow flash lit up the room. Everyone flinched back as Tsunade appeared in the middle of the room, disorientated and annoyed.

"I-I had to," Kushina stammered as Tsunade took stock of the situation. "He snapped and it took all of us to stop him."

Tsunade knelt in front of me and put a hand on my chest. I flinched as the medical chakra rushed through me. "He'll be fine, Minato, don't ever do that again. Kushina, get him somewhere quiet and stay with him, he needs real rest, without unfamiliar people hanging around. Nagato, if I ever catch you putting a Genjutsu like that on a comrade outside of a spar again, I will personally have you put on probation. It's a testament to his self-control that none of you are dead." She turned back to me. "Kichiro, focus on me, I need you to lie down and try and go back to sleep naturally."

"Why couldn't I leave?" I asked as she stood up and pulled the two children off me.

"I'll be having some very strong words with your clan. A new religion of sorts rose up recently and its preaching against Jinchuuriki, among other things. The longer—"

"Jinchuuriki?" My father asked coldly. "Is it true then? Mito-sama is dead?"

"She's been dead for thirteen years. She sealed the Kyuubi into me."

My father's fingers twitched. "I thought they were lying—you would have been nine—I—what was she thinking?" He snapped.

No one answered him. Tsunade stood up and herded everyone, including my father, outside, leaving me in the room with Kushina.


	77. Chapter 77 - Part 12

Recovering from chakra exhaustion was never fun. It was long, boring, and frustrating, even more so when I wasn't allowed to leave the house. It made it especially difficult to avoid people, and someone was always watching me, making sure I didn't push myself too hard.

I was all for kids learning to read early, but I wasn't a fan of getting stuck with teaching them. I wasn't very good at it. In fact, by most standards, I was illiterate when it came to kanji. I knew enough to fake it, but I didn't understand it like I understood English. I still wrote in English whenever I could, occasionally forgetting and filling out a mission report in English and getting scolded for it. For mission reports, I almost exclusively wrote in hiragana, which garnered more than a few raised eyebrows, but only the Sandaime dared to comment. After three years only seeing seals on paper instead of kanji, I was very much out of practice.

It was extremely embarrassing when I had to stand up and ask one of the adults what different characters meant. On my own, I probably could have guessed close enough for comprehension, but not while trying to teach the little ones. I had no idea who motivated the children to learn to read, or even how they managed, but they kept at it for over an hour every day, sometimes coming back after a break.

Even after I recovered, I was trapped in the house, everyone hovering over me. Normally upstairs would be an escape, but someone was always up there as well. Meditating was the only time I could escape the feeling of being watched and monitored.

Over the first week, my father grew progressively sicker. By the end of the week, getting out of bed for a meal was exhausting for him. I sneaked downstairs during the night, trying to figure out the problem and treat it. It significantly lengthened my own recovery, but I didn't care. I was careful not to get myself sick in the process. After the first week, Kushina caught on and started sleeping next to and eventually on top of me, which made sneaking downstairs progressively more difficult, but ANBU made me earn my position as an agent and it never stopped me, much to her frustration. She didn't make me stop but did her best to limit the time I spent attempting to heal him.

Three weeks later, I was fully recovered and my father was beginning to recover. Minato started helping the Hokage in the tower during the day, and Kushina started working on a top-secret seal project. She vanished early every morning and reappeared for dinner. I would spar with her every evening, which was exhausting, not to mention Nagato's sisters wanting to learn as well and pestering me during the day. The youngest girl, Noa, even started some of the simplest katas and participated in the meditation exercises I gave them. When Nagato wasn't working ANBU patrols, he was helping, but he didn't have the patience for teaching and he didn't understand why his sisters didn't always 'get it' right away.

On one particularly lazy day while all the kids were in school, I opened my eyes when a heavy weight settled on my chest, almost constricting my breathing. "What are you doing?" I asked Nagato, not moving from where I had settled comfortably on the sofa.

"Wondering why Kushina still likes to lay on you."

"You're not supposed to be putting pressure on my chest like that."

"Why not?"

"Because my heart is still scarred. You know this."

"What? Did a pretty girl reject you?" He teased and shifted his weight.

I rolled my eyes.

"You've been out on the field for years, if you were at risk, why weren't you pulled out?" It was a valid question, but I still shoved him off me, only for Kushina to roll over the back of the couch and take his place.

"Why are you two so abnormally clingy today?" I asked in exasperation as Kushina wriggled an arm under my back and curled against my side. My father frowned from where he sat beside my head reading one of the journals Kushina had kept since she learned to write.

"What do you mean your heart is scarred?" He asked as Kushina finished settling in.

"Just an injury I got at the beginning of this war. I still don't know how I survived, I wasn't supposed to." I reached up and grabbed his hand tightly before he could immerse himself in guilt and worry. "In a few months, the scar tissue will be stiff enough for me to remove the scar and fix the tissue."

"What do you mean?"

"You know how the heart is muscle, right?" He nodded slowly. "Well, it's a different kind of muscle than what is in your arms and legs, but since it's a heart, any damage it takes is supposed to be lethal. In my case, a bunch of idiots decided it wouldn't be, so with some help from Bijū chakra, it wasn't. Well, there was an issue or two or ten. One thing led to another and my heart got healed but not really. I'm not sure how, but my heart can't heal on its own anymore. Instead, I have to wait for the scar to get to a point at which I can properly heal it—well, force it to heal."

"Then why were you in the field? Doesn't that mean if you were hit in the chest your heart could rupture?"

I sighed and Kushina answered for me. "That's exactly what could have happened—"

"I wouldn't have known about the rupture until I dropped dead." I interrupted. Kushina swatted my arm.

"We didn't have a choice. Minato needed his help against Iwa, so we compromised. Kichiro didn't fight unless there was no other choice."

My father laid a hand over my forehead. "You could have died."

"He has died, the Shinigami just doesn't like how he tastes, so he keeps spitting Kichiro back out."

"Kushina!" I scolded and sat up.

"What? It's true!"

"You don't have to say it like that!"

She just rolled her eyes and propped herself against our father's shoulder.

"It is nice to know I don't have to worry about you," he commented as Nagato snickered. "Kushina, your mother said the exact same thing when Kichiro said his first word. I believe her exact words were 'the Shinigami better really hate the brat, otherwise I'm going to strangle him before he leaves infancy.'"

Kushina smirked at me. I just rolled my eyes and laid back down, propping my head up on my father's leg. Kushina settled her head on my shoulder.

My father laid a warm hand on my collarbone and his fingers gently traced the scar on my neck. Kushina's body radiated heat, lulling me into a light doze. A while later, Nagato quietly excused himself.

Several minutes later, my father spoke. "Is Kichiro asleep?"

"Sorta," Kushina answered quietly. "Let him be, this is as close to real sleep as he's gotten in ages."

"Wait, he's—"

"Been here for the past few months, yeah, but he hasn't had a chance to truly rest."

"What is rest?" My father asked rhetorically.

Kushina slid her free hand into my father's, distracting him from the scar. A few minutes later, her breathing deepened as she napped beside me. I briefly blinked open my eyes when he stood up and stuffed a pillow under my head, but I didn't get up, I just turned my face into Kushina's hair.

When ambient noise of others in the room faded, Kushina sat up with a wide yawn. "Kichiro? Can I talk to you?"

"Yeah, anytime." I sat up so I could face her.

"It's about To-chan."

"What about him?"

"He's not okay, right?"

"That's right."

"You know I don't remember him—I just—he's not the same as Ise described. Is that right?"

"Yes. He's not the same as I remember him from Uzu, but it's been more than fifteen years since Iwa faked his death. Anyone would change in that time no matter what the circumstances."

"That's not the point."

"Then what is your point?"

"What happened to To-chan in Iwa? Can you tell me what you know?"

I looked her in the eye, my chest tight with pain and memories.

"I want to understand, I want to help him."

"Kushina, remember when you were tortured by Suna when you were little?"

She gritted her teeth.

"Do you remember how you felt when I made you tell me what happened?" I couldn't maintain eye contact with her, but I grabbed her hand instead. "It was hard for you. At some points, I wasn't sure if you would be able to."

"He told you everything."

"Yes, but it wasn't because he wanted to."

"What's that supposed to mean?"

"The Hokage needed a report on the torture methods Iwa has developed and someone needed to make sure that To-chan hadn't been turned traitor."

"He would never!"

"It was better to be safe."

"But you had just remembered everything from Iwa!"

"They're old memories, Kushina. Just because I couldn't remember them doesn't mean they didn't fade with time. After I got back from Iwa, the trauma, both remembered and not, healed. It's nice to have the blank sections of my memory filled and I was reeling for a while because of how horrific the experiences were, but I'm better now. Aside from Ise, I have the closest emotional connection to To-chan. Considering I'm a ninja, medic, and was imprisoned alongside To-chan for some time, I was the obvious choice."

"I should have been the one to help."

"Why are you asking about this anyways?"

"I want to help, I want to do something. To-chan just wanders around the house all day with a horrible expression, like he doesn't believe what he's seeing. You never did that after you came back."

"Okay, I understand why you want to know, but To-chan's story isn't a story you want to hear."

"I know, but I can't just sit here and watch him. Minato—"

"Where is Minato, anyways?"

"The Hokage needed him for something."

"I see. He's going to be the Yondaime, isn't he?"

Kushina gave me a funny look. "Minato? As Hokage? Did you hit your head and not tell us?"

"He would make a good Hokage."

"I suppose you're right, but we've had this conversation already."

I fell silent and stared at my hands, fidgeting with a hole in the sole of my sock.

"Please, Kichiro, please tell me what happened to To-chan."

"Why are you asking me? Why aren't you asking To-chan?"

"I don't want to upset him."

"I won't pretend that it won't be hard, but if he's not willing to tell you himself, it's not my place to betray his trust."

"Then can you tell me what happened to you?"

"I'm not mad, but why do you want to know so badly? What do you really want to know?"

She slid across the couch and pulled me into a tight hug. "I don't want you to hurt anymore. I don't want To-chan to hurt anymore."

I pressed my forehead against hers. "I love you, Kushina, that's why I'm still here."

"Nii-chan—"

"I'm not going to lie to you and tell you that everything is okay, because it's not, but as long as you're here, as long as you're safe and happy, it will all be okay in the end, I promise."

"That might make you feel better, but it doesn't help. I want to make sure you're never hurt again."

I pulled her into a bone-crushing hug, hiding my face in her shoulder. "You're the best sister I could ask for, Kushina. I love you and I wish I could give you anything you wanted, but that's one thing I can't give you; that's the one thing I wouldn't give you if I could."

"Please, Nii-chan, there must be some way. I-I can't take this anymore. I want my brother back! I want to be able to look at my daddy and see more than a ghost."

"Kushina—"

"No, he's barely alive. He doesn't see me, all he sees is Iwa and pain. I need my daddy. He's in there, I can see it, but he won't let me pull him out." She continued in a whisper. "You're the same way, Nii-chan. Not all of the time, but whenever I'm least expecting it, you recoil. You shut everyone out and just stare. You stare at nothing. After you got back from Iwa, you told us what happened, but you kept your eyes closed the entire time, reliving it. You acted fine, but it was like you were acting from the memory of what you used to be like. After you came back from ANBU, you were fine, but ever since you rescued To-chan, you've been the same as before."

I couldn't dispute it. I knew a part of me was broken, broken beyond repair. "I'm sorry, Kushina."

What sounded like an argument started in the hallway, but I couldn't make out the words behind the closed door. The voices quickly rose and I recognized Ise and my father. I kept holding on to Kushina, refusing to let her go, even when we could both clearly hear the argument.

"Shut up! Just shut up, Ise!" My father bellowed.

"No! I'm not going to let you destroy yourself like that!"

"Everyone was better off before I came back. I shouldn't have returned to Konoha."

"Your two children are on the other side of that door right now. You abandoned them once, damn it, I don't care what your reasons were. How dare you even consider putting them through that again! You should be ashamed for even considering it!"

"They'll be fine, they're better off without me."

"Ryuu, do you even hear yourself? Did you even listen to what they were saying in there? When you died, Kichiro was devastated, and a year later, Midori died. Kichiro barely survived losing you once, do you really want to see if he can survive it again?"

"I can't live with this!"

"You wouldn't be able to live with yourself if you left."

"Then I just won't live!"

"Kichiro, please, make them stop," Kushina begged at the same time I pulled a kunai out of her pouch and tossed it at the doorframe with a chakra string attached, temporarily activating the privacy seal to block out the conversation. "No! That's not what I meant!"

"If either one of us goes out there now, it'll only make things worse. Trust me, Kushina. Ise will take care of To-chan and if he can't, he'll come get us."

She tried to push me away, but I grabbed her wrists. "I can't just sit here."

"You can, and you will. To-chan is going to be fine. Ise has complete control over the seals in this house."

"How do you know?" She snapped.

"Because I know."

"I can't do nothing!"

"Sometimes, the only way you can help is to listen."

"I can't just accept that!"

"Come here, Kushina, come here." I didn't give her a choice as I pulled her close. After a moment of resistance, she collapsed against me, holding her heart.

"—enough, Ryuu." Ise stated firmly when the seal failed. "Your children care about you, they need you."

"They're adults, it's too late—"

"No, it's not too late. They never replaced you, not even when Fusō and I came to Konoha and tried to fill those holes you and Midori left behind. Now you're here to fill a void they barely realized existed. They have the chance at a family. You have a second chance with your family."

"That's not what it's like."

"That is what it's like. You get a second chance to care for your family—they get the chance to have a family, to have someone who can take care of and protect them."

"Do you have any idea what they've already been through? They deserve better than someone—"

"I know what you're thinking: Kichiro spent almost fifteen years of his life under the Shitagau."

"He deserves better—"

"He is a Jinchuuriki, against his will, because you weren't there."

"I know! No one was there to protect him."

"I talked to the Hokage. Several times. He said that the clan head from before the massacre had already decided to give Kichiro to Konoha. Even if both you and Midori were alive, Kichiro's fate would have been the same. He would have returned with Mito to Konoha after the anniversary."

"The massacre—"

"Mito was going to attend the celebration and bring Kichiro to Konoha afterwards."

"Did he know?"

"No. No one could have stopped it."

"How? Everyone supported me when I told Mito no from the beginning—hell, I wasn't even the first to tell her no, I was one of the last."

"The clan head didn't change his mind until a few months before the massacre. The Hokage thinks that he suspected an attack of some kind because he agreed to send five other future ninja to Konoha on apprenticeships alongside a sudden influx of goods Uzu had been limiting in their export."

"What's your point?"

"Do you have any idea how much power you have over the two of them? Aside from you, the only person in this village that Kichiro will obey without question is Namikaze Minato—a boy six months younger than him. Don't you dare try and walk away from me right now! How haven't you noticed? When he gets summoned to the Hokage Tower, he looks at you for permission. The only time he will voluntarily go out to train with anyone is when you tell him to."

"I've been gone for two decades! Twenty years, Ise. Kichiro could barely walk when I left, Kushina had just spoken her first word."

"I've had seven children since then, I know exactly how much life can change. You, more than anyone, should understand how special your own children are. The only reason Konoha is physically standing is Kichiro. The only reason Konoha survived is because Kushina and Minato have almost single-handedly supported morale and prevented this village from cannibalizing itself."

"I know you're trying to convince me of something—"

"Kichiro died for the Sandaime—a man who hates him more than almost anything else. Minato practically won this war by himself. Kushina—kami, I don't even know the half of what she's done. She's a formidable ninja, but she's nowhere near as powerful as Kichiro or Minato. No, her power is just different: she gave Kichiro his moniker."

I snapped my head towards Kushina. Until now, it was only information I either knew or suspected to be true, but that was a tidbit I had a difficult time believing.

"In my defense, I didn't know it was you until after the name stuck," Kushina insisted. "I didn't realize that I was the one who started it until later and eventually forgot about it after other things happened." She stood up and walked over to the door. I stayed seated, watching her carefully.

"—instinctual grasp of people made her invaluable in an uncountable number of roles across the shinobi corps. She can fill any leadership role in this village without batting an eye."

Kushina squeezed her eyes closed. For a moment, her hand rested on the handle and I thought she was going to fling the door open. Without warning, she laid her hand over the privacy seal and activated it, blocking out the conversation. After a moment she hurried back and curled up beside me. I relaxed back against the arm of the sofa as she wrapped her arms around my middle and rested her head against my chest, listening to my heartbeat.

(-_-)

I made sure not to train Nagato's siblings while Ise or Fusō were home to avoid poking at old wounds. It ran me ragged, and several times, I gave up and lay in the middle of the backyard while they continued to practice.

While it was obvious to me that the Hokage was subtly training Minato to take over, everyone else gave me odd looks when I brought it up. At the end of the fourth week after our return, Minato and Kushina were officially confined to the village while their teams, who were now all Chuunin, organized themselves, begging training from their respective senseis between missions. Officially, I was on leave, but I still worked as a medic for ANBU or the hospital during the night and was often called in whenever an agent returned from a mission injured. At least once a week, the Hokage called me in to assign missions for ANBU, occasionally for the general corps as well, usually when Kagami was otherwise occupied. Nagato continued to take regular ANBU missions.

While the Hokage gave the orders, I suspected Minato made the plan. On several occasions, I was given an off-the-books mission to keep up morale. I used all my stealth to sneak into camps and provide 'miraculous' recoveries and impossible healings, becoming an actual spirit among a significant percentage of the shinobi. The rumors that I died were especially interesting.

Because of my clearance, I was sometimes called in to help Kagami with the logistics of assignments and to run messages between him and the Hokage. Kagami had taken it upon himself to train me in using the katana, the trademark weapon of the ANBU General, shortly after the end of the second war. However, the lessons were becoming increasingly frequent. Before the war, I could hold my own against the best, even though I never used it in an actual fight, preferring my sticks. Over the year after peace negotiations began, Kagami seemed determined to make me the best, even though it was a weapon I would only have use for if I was surrounded, drastically outnumbered, and out of chakra.

In the next year, Minato solidified his reputation as the Yellow Flash and Iwa backed down and opened peace negotiations. As Minato gained more of the limelight, I faded into the background. The day before the Hokage was to publicly announce peace, he called me, Jiraiya, Tsunade, Sakumo, Kagami, Minato, and Kushina to his office.

All of us were extremely confused. While it wasn't uncommon for any of us to be called, for us all to be there at once, it didn't make sense, though in hindsight, it should have been obvious.

When I arrived, Hokage was standing in front of his desk, as if he was going to make a formal announcement, Kagami stood off his left shoulder, his hand on the katana attached to his belt, smirking. The Hokage was in his formal uniform, and Kagami was in the formal, public ANBU uniform, but with his mask attached to his belt. Minato and Kushina, the only people who didn't know the identity of the ANBU General, struggled to hide their reactions. Sakumo arrived a few seconds later, followed by Tsunade and Jiraiya in the middle of a heated argument. Minato and Kushina were almost a minute late. When they rushed in apologizing, Kagami took up his position behind and slightly to the left of the Sandaime. He smirked mischievously. While it was weird to see an Uchiha smiling, it unnerved Sakumo and I the most. Kagami enjoyed teasing his underlings, it was always in good sport, but Sakumo and I were the most frequent targets. He managed to get the Hokage in on the game several times, though the Hokage made a point never to join the fun against me unless I was only one among many targets.

I found myself scanning the room for cameras and traps, as well as mentally making sure I had not forgotten anything important. I hadn't, which only confused me even more. Sakumo was doing the same thing.

"As you are all aware, I am going to be announcing the end of the Third Shinobi World War tomorrow. I will be making a second announcement as well."

At that, Tsunade and Jiraiya paled. Kagami was staring at me to the point where I was too unnerved to pay enough attention to the Sandaime.

"I will be announcing the Yondaime Hokage of Konohagakure."

Jiraiya and Tsunade took a step back and I wasn't paying any attention to Kagami anymore, my own face paled. The rational side of me knew he was going to pick Minato. The irrational side of me was terrified he changed his decision.

"Everyone here has been seriously considered for the position. Kagami and I have extensively discussed each of your strengths and weaknesses."

I was having a mild panic attack as irrationality took over. Jiraiya and Tsunade looked like they wanted to bolt, but the rest of the group was interested and excited. I started to turn and walk out but Kagami's eyes swirled into the Sharingan, a silent warning to stay put. I blinked and his eyes were back to normal. No one else noticed the exchange.

"Tsunade, your legacy speaks for itself and you've done nothing but prove yourself more than worthy of it many times over."

She nodded in acknowledgement.

"Jiraiya, your progress since you became a Genin has been astounding, and it continues to grow exponentially, even though your less-than-savory antics put a damper on your accomplishments."

Everyone chuckled a little at the jab, and Jiraiya leered theatrically at Tsunade, who barely restrained herself from punching him.

"Sakumo, you embody the perfect shinobi, self-sacrificing, intelligent, resourceful, invisible. You live by the opening quote in the shinobi rule book 'a true shinobi protects the village from its shadow'."

Sakumo took a deep breath and seemed to stand a little taller.

"Kushina, you command respect wherever you go, you inspire your comrades to endure, to never give up."

Kushina beamed at the praise.

"All of you make brilliant leaders, no one can deny it, you've proven yourselves many times over, however, none of you have shown both the initiative and vision needed to lead an entire village. Minato and Kichiro, step forward."

Minato was in a daze as he stepped forward. I tried to step back, only for Sakumo to put a hand on my back and shove me forward. I caught myself but didn't have the presence of mind to glare at him.

"Kichiro, since you were nine, you have been considered for the position of Yondaime."

Both Minato and Kushina gaped at me as they processed the new information.

"We've had our differences over time, many of them quite severe and destructive. Even in the face of the persecution leveled against you, you never flinched from what you believed to be right, no matter the pressure I, your elders, your peers, your friends, and even your family put on you. At first, I interpreted this as stubbornness, an arrogance and ego nothing could deflate. This was a shortcoming on my part, not yours. I have always been lauded for my knowledge, my intelligence, my talents, but I never understood there could be something necessary beyond that. Kichiro, in my entire life, if I gain even a tenth of the wisdom you have gained in less than twenty-five years, maybe, maybe I could consider myself successful. In your wisdom, you want nothing to do with leadership and power, and I believe that is one your best qualities. At the same time, I have come to respect you too much to force you into a position you have spoken so vehemently against."

I breathed an audible sigh of relief as the Sandaime turned to Minato.

"Minato, you've come a long way from the homeless orphan who stumbled into this tower, begging for food. You are now internationally famous, or infamous, depending on the perspective. You are willing to sacrifice everything, and you nearly did on several occasions, in defense of your village and comrades. On top of that, you are charismatic, willing to work with even the most stubborn and hardheaded individuals." Kagami coughed my name, but quickly pretended nothing happened when the Sandaime sent him an annoyed glare. Unfortunately, Kagami wasn't wrong. "You are not afraid to ask for help when you need it, and you are by no means naïve when you receive it. You have a knack for coming up with mutually beneficial solutions, even in the most difficult of situations. You are a rare genius whose like I have never met. No one in this generation can rival your intellect and skill. Because of this and many, many other reasons, I would like you, Namikaze Minato, to become the Yondaime Hokage of Konohagakure. Do you accept?"

Minato's jaw dropped in shock, as if the offer came out of the blue.

I nudged him. He looked at me. I gently prodded him forward. "I-I accept," Minato responded.

The Sandaime stepped forward and pulled off the outer coat of his uniform and put it around Minato's shoulders. Reflexively, Minato put his arms in the sleeves. In full view of everyone, the Sandaime placed the Hokage hat on Minato's head, then turned him around.

"I present to you, the Yondaime Hokage of Konohagakure." The Sandaime said. Everyone was still in a mild state of shock as the Sandaime took two steps backwards to stand beside me and Kagami stood on my other side. I exchanged a glance with them. They nodded in acknowledgement.

As one, the three of us knelt, a display of fealty I doubted any other Hokage ever received. Minato was too stunned to react and the others stared in amazement.

When we stood back up, I led an unorthodox cheer, to which even the Sandaime joined in. It had Minato bright red by the time the Sandaime put a hand on my shoulder and motioned for the rest of the room to calm down. "I will make the formal announcement tomorrow, until then, please keep Minato's appointment to yourselves. Except for Minato and Kichiro, you're all dismissed."

"And all of you owe me big-time because I hands down won the bet of next Hokage," I added.

"You bet on me?" Minato asked incredulously.

"I bet Sandaime-sama would announce you as the Yondaime shortly before or during the public announcement of peace." I clapped Minato on the back. I made the bet shortly after the war started.

The rest of the party left, happy for Minato and more than a little exasperated with me. Kushina was the only person who didn't bet against me, claiming neutrality in the debate.

The Sandaime's expression turned serious and the four of us arranged ourselves into a square. I was across from Kagami. "Kichiro, you are intimately familiar with ANBU, more familiar than any other member, arguably, more familiar than Kagami himself."

I frowned, unsure of what his point was.

Kagami continued. "As I'm sure you can deduce, Hiruzen is stepping down because of his age. Since I am the same age, I have also noticed it has become increasingly difficult for me to perform my duties."

The Sandaime took over. "Traditionally, it has been the purview of the Hokage to appoint the ANBU General, however, until now, the Hokage has been part of the ANBU corps at some point and more familiar with how it works. Minato, you may be qualified to lead the general shinobi corps, but not to discredit your abilities in any way, you are not qualified to make decisions on behalf of ANBU."

"Hiruzen gave me the liberty of deciding on my successor. At the time, I was not aware of who he had chosen as his own successor. In ANBU, there are only two people I believe are capable of taking control of ANBU. Kichiro, you are one of them, Sakumo is the other. Sakumo has his son and hasn't been an active part of ANBU in over a decade. Kichiro, you have been an active member of ANBU, and most importantly, I asked most of my men their opinion of you and what they would think of you as their leader. The dissent was nonexistent."

"I will be perfectly honest with both of you." The Sandaime continued. "Minato, you were not my first choice as my successor. There are three reasons for this. First, I do not know you as well as I know Kichiro. Second, his mission records are far superior to your own. He has maintained a reputation for over a decade and through two wars, you have a mere two years of international renown. Finally, inside of the village, you may be popular, but outside of it, you have few friends. Kichiro has a relationship with two Kage, and civilians across the elemental nations would support him if he asked, simply because of his clan name."

I winced, that was not something the Sandaime should have told Minato, true or not.

"What's most impressive, however, is that Kichiro was groomed to be Hokage since he arrived in this village, no matter how much he disliked the idea and tried to knock himself out of the running, while you, Minato, were not, yet you stand on nearly equal footing with him. Because of Kichiro's aversion to becoming Hokage, I considered you both on an equal level. The tipping point was when Kagami came to me with his desire to retire."

"With that, all the pieces fell into place." Kagami finished. They weren't talking to me, this was all for Minato's benefit. "We discussed the decision and could find no faults with it. The ANBU General must be someone the Hokage trusts without reservation. Minato, do you trust Kichiro?"

"Of course," Minato replied automatically.

Kagami turned to me. "Kichiro, it is the general belief that the Hokage is the protector of the village. This is true. All shinobi protect the village, but none are required to sacrifice as much as the Hokage. At least, that is what most shinobi believe. This belief is incorrect. The ANBU General sacrifices far more because he fills not one role, but two. It seems, to most people, the Hokage is almost always in the village. This is highly incorrect. The Hokage fulfils the most difficult and the most disgusting missions he cannot ask his shinobi to do, or no one is qualified to fulfil. While the Hokage is out of the village, the ANBU general impersonates him, while fulfilling his own duties."

Some things made much more sense, such as the ANBU missions that always seemed to get done, but no one seemed to do; some days, during the height of our enmity, the Sandaime was much more patient with me than I expected, and other days he was significantly worse.

"No one expects the Hokage not to be who they say they are," I noted.

"Exactly," Kagami said. "But that is not the end of the General's duties. The Hokage may be considered the most powerful shinobi in the village and the population expects them to lay down their lives for the village, but this is not a situation the Hokage should be in. The sudden death of a Hokage throws the village into chaos, it is the ANBU General's job to make sure that doesn't happen, to literally be the Hokage's body double, the decoy, the sacrifice. This is the one and only time the General's authority supersedes the Hokage's."

"It's not foolproof," the Hokage continued, "The invasion at the beginning of this war revealed one of the many holes in this plan, but it decreases the chance of a Hokage dying and inadvertently starting a power struggle that could tear the village apart. Minato, you are qualified to lead most shinobi, however, you are not qualified to make decisions on behalf of ANBU. I dislike the idea of detracting from your authority, but at least for the first few years, for the good of the village, someone familiar with the system must be the one making decisions on its behalf."

Kagami took a step forward, his face less than six inches from my own, forcing me to look him in the eye. "Kichiro, I know exactly what this request entails, and I do not ask it lightly. You are not being ordered or pressured in any way, you are entirely free to decline or accept. Knowing what this job entails, Uzumaki Kichiro, do you accept?"

"I accept," I answered with absolute certainty. Kagami unbuckled the katana from his belt and presented it to me. I took it and attached it to my belt.

Kagami stepped back. "Outside of this room, only two living people know about this arrangement, and that is Hiruzen's wife and my own, for obvious reasons. Minato, because of this and your new position, you will not be able to continue living on the Uzumaki clan compound."

"I figured as much."

"Kagami and I are also aware of how close you both are to Kushina. Minato, unless you get off your ass and marry the poor girl, she is not to be told."

"Fusō and the other women already have your wedding planned," I noted.

"What?" Minato asked, dumbfounded.

The Sandaime held out a hand and Kagami handed over several ryo.

"She likes me too?"

"She doesn't shut up about it when you're not around," I informed him. "The same goes for you." I held out my hand and the Sandaime scowled and passed the ryo to me, alongside several of his own. "I totally won a lot more than I expected today."

Minato didn't hear me. "I-I have to go—"

The Sandaime grabbed his arm. "We're not done here yet."

Minato retook his place.

"There's only one thing left. Congratulations to both of you. The future of Konoha is in your hands."

Minato and I both turned a little green at that statement, and then blue as Kagami hugged us both far tighter than the situation demanded.

"Of course, Kagami and I will be here to help if you need it."

(-_-)

After Minato took off the robes and I sealed the katana away, we opted to walk home and let the news sink in before we were expected to act naturally. I had a feeling Minato and Kushina were going to have a very long conversation. It was just after nightfall when we made it back. The announcement of peace was no secret and I had totally forgotten about the fact the clan was having a full-blown party that evening to celebrate early, mostly because all the adults who worked at the hospital volunteered to take the shift at the hospital during the celebrations. Sakumo and Kagami were already there, and alongside Kushina, immediately made sure to get Minato as drunk as they could. It was more difficult than any of them expected, especially when Kagami and Sakumo kept stopping him from getting Kushina alone.

Sakumo clued me in to their goal of getting Minato to publicly confess his love for Kushina when he asked if I would be okay not drinking to burn alcohol out of Minato's system in case something happened. Considering my status as a Jinchuuriki, it took a lot of alcohol for me to get tipsy enough that I couldn't use medical jutsus, but I agreed anyways. Jiraiya and Tsunade showed up later, still bickering over something, and not even Jiraiya could get Minato tipsy. Desperate, Kagami enlisted the help of his wife and Fusō to spike Minato's water. The Sandaime showed up and picked up on the situation within minutes, offering Minato a tiny bottle of sake that he couldn't turn down, especially after the Hokage murmured something in his ear.

To their frustration, Minato was either a very cognizant drunk or was aware of what they were attempting to do. I watched the whole thing from the doorway, just in case any wayward children decided to wander up and get in trouble. They knew better and the Uzumaki dogs were watching them, while Natsuki entertained the ones who had a chance of sneaking out in the building that had been added to the house when it became obvious there wasn't enough space, especially with several of the original orphan survivors married with children of their own.

I was very, very entertained when Minato finally snapped from the frustration of being unable to speak with Kushina.

Jiraiya had managed to get enough alcohol into him that he was quite a bit more outgoing and much less cautious than he normally was.

Luckily, Minato didn't look drunk when he jumped up on the table. Everyone immediately quieted and looked up at him.

"Kushina," he began. "I've been an utterly blind fool. You made me into the man I am today, everything I have, it's all because of you. I love you, Kushina, I love you with all my heart, you mean everything to me."

Minato glanced towards me, a silent question in his eyes. I beamed up at him and nodded. He turned his attention back to Kushina.

"In light of everything, I couldn't imagine life without you. I know there isn't anything I can offer you, the little I have is nothing in comparison to what you've given me. I love you, Kushina, more than words can express. Will you marry me?"

The entire room waited with bated breath for Kushina's answer. For a long moment, she stared up at him, absolutely shocked.

"Yes," she breathed, barely audible. "Yes, yes, yes, yes, YES!" She screamed the last word, nearly knocking down the Sandaime as she ran towards him, leaping up onto the table. I was certain the poor farmer thirty miles outside the village heard the cheer that erupted as they finally, finally kissed. I was roaring right alongside everyone else, that is, until I glanced behind me and noticed a cluster of toddlers, terrified beyond tears, clinging to several frightened dogs in the doorway. I quickly ushered them all back down into the basement, glad I didn't smell like alcohol, and ended up spending the remainder of the night with them. Seals were a beautiful thing for blocking out noise.

* * *

 _Author's note: It's been over a year and a half since I wrote this chapter. I still remember sitting under my roommate's bed and writing this while ignoring the four-page paper I had to write for my advanced writing class and the buttload of Spanish homework to finish. I ended up only getting about two hours of sleep and missing the first half of my 08:30 class. At least I got an A on the paper._

 _Thank ya'll so much for the reviews!_


	78. Chapter 78

I didn't sleep for most of the night; children were not still sleepers. Shortly before sunrise, I got an hour or two of rest, but when I woke up, one of the infants, who was just barely old enough to sleep in the dogpile of children, was chewing on my hair.

"Are you hungry?" I groaned.

The one-year-old nodded and sniffled as I pulled my hair out of his grasp.

I sat up, doing a quick head count. There were fourteen children under the age of six in the room, three of them were in cribs. Four of the youngest were clinging to me, while the rest were either lying on top of poor old dogs or curled up with each other on one of the mats strewn about the room.

One of the kids woke up at the movement and crawled into my lap. I hugged the half-asleep boy. After a few minutes, Yuzu came downstairs, looking exhausted, though not hungover.

"Minato asked me to tell you the two of you have been summoned to the Hokage tower. Takeshi said to remind you everyone who isn't working this evening will be at the Akimichi compound to watch the Hokage's announcement from the roofs. Finally, Kushina wants to know why you were asked to stay to talk with the Hokage later."

"Thanks," I laid the boy in my lap down beside one of the other children and stood up. "I need to go." I ruffled her hair on my way past.

"I'm not a kid anymore," she protested, fixing it.

"You're younger than me," I answered, smirking.

"By two years! Besides, I'm married, you're not; I have kids, you don't!"

"I babysit these kids enough to claim them," I responded. "And I'm never getting married." I took a step out of the room, then turned around. "Also, I'm headed back into ANBU, so I can't watch the kids by myself anymore. Make sure everyone knows, will you? I'll be around, it's just I could be called on at any minute so you can't rely on me as much as you used to."

"What are you doing now?"

I winced. "I can't tell you that, sorry, not even Kushina can know the details."

"What about Minato?" She asked, but I was already headed up the stairs and out of sight.

I tracked down Minato, who upstairs and staring at the ceiling in a daze. Kushina was asleep on the other side of the room and Nagato had tucked himself into another corner, his sisters piled on top of him or curled against him, all of whom were now kunoichi. Both of Nagato's brothers were showing promise of becoming shinobi, which was exceptionally odd, considering their parents were civilians. The only other child of the clan able to become a shinobi was Kaito, who developed the clan's Kekkei Genkai. He became a Genin a month beforehand and was laying at Kushina's feet. My father's chakra signature was coming from the bathroom, where he was showering.

I laid down beside Minato.

"I feel like I'm either drunk or dreaming."

I grabbed his wrist and checked. "Neither."

"Genjutsu?"

"Nope."

"Hallucinating?"

"Then we're having the same hallucination."

"I'm fairly certain that's impossible."

"It is."

"Can I talk to you?"

"You are but go ahead."

"Alone, we both know Nagato isn't asleep."

"The meeting room is secure."

"That's fine," I answered, sitting up. Minato was already on his feet and helped me up.

He pulled me downstairs by the elbow and into the meeting room where I activated the privacy seals, which were as closer to impenetrable than any other seal ever invented. No one could listen through that. Minato knelt on one side of the table, sitting seiza. I mirrored him.

I hated kneeling in the seiza position. Even after nearly twenty years of using it regularly for meditation and formal meetings, especially those relating to the whole clan, it was still somewhat uncomfortable and, at times, painful.

For a long time, Minato didn't speak. "I had a lot to think about last night."

I didn't answer.

"I thought a lot about you being ANBU General."

I knew where this was going.

"I don't want you to die for me."

"It's not your decision to make," I responded.

"Nii-san—"

"It would hurt Kushina—"

"The only person it doesn't hurt is me."

"Your father—"

"My father is a shinobi. Look, I've know you since you were six, right?"

Minato nodded.

"When have I ever doubted you could achieve your dream to be Hokage?"

Minato looked down at the table.

"I've never doubted you, but that's another story. Since I started training, I made myself a promise, a promise that you and Kushina would never die of anything but old age, preferably long after me."

"You barely knew me."

"Maybe, but I knew my sister. I've always protected the two of you whenever I could and I always will. Nothing you can do will change that."

"You shouldn't have to."

"I chose to. It's one of the very few choices I've been able to make entirely of my own free will."

"It's not fair."

"Life's not fair."

"But I can make it fair.

"Bullshit."

"I can!"

"If you could do that, you'd be a god. You aren't."

He looked down.

I couldn't feel my toes.

"I had a lot to think about last night." He confessed.

I didn't answer.

"Am I ready to be Hokage?"

"No one is ready," I responded.

"The Hokage said I wasn't the first choice."

"He shouldn't have told you that."

"I'm glad he did."

"You would make a great Hokage, better than—"

"Don't go there, Minato. You can't afford to doubt yourself. If you're uncertain, everyone else will suffer for it. The Hokage chose you. It doesn't matter what you think. His last act as a leader is to put you in charge. His reasoning is sound. Minato, you pulled yourself to this from nothing. Every step of the way, I had someone, sometimes even you and Kushina, shoving me forward. Someone like me does not make a good leader."

"I had help!"

"Yes, you did, everyone gets help, but you earned the help you got. If I had a choice, I would be nothing more than a damn good medic with nothing else to my name. The Hokage knows I would have abdicated the hat within ten years, maybe even five, and he knows it would have gone to you. Whatever the reason, a leader must want to lead, I don't."

"You'll tell me if I screw up, right?"

"If you want, I'll give you more of a headache than I gave the Sandaime, I'll take devil's advocate to the extreme, on one condition."

Minato frowned. "What?"

"Don't die on me."

"I can't make that promise—"

"Yes, you can. You send me in first. Don't underestimate me. I'm a hell of a lot harder to kill than you can ever hope to be. I swear I'll be there every step of the way as long as you promise to stay alive."

He was silent for a long time. "I promise."

"Whatever the Hokage says, everyone knows you're the best person for the job."

Minato didn't move.

I stood up. "I'm going to take a shower and change for the announcement."

"What?" Minato gaped.

"Minato, the announcement of peace has been planned for over a week."

"I know that, but—it just hasn't sunk in yet."

"Remember, we're supposed to meet the Sandaime at eight."

"What?"

"He told me last night—you were right there, Minato, you said it was fine."

"Oh."

"Just get ready."

(-_-)

A half hour later, I was dressed in my best Jōnin uniform with my cleanest and newest haori slung over my shoulder. I waited by the door for Minato, chatting absently with Nagato.

"Why was everyone called out so suddenly yesterday?" Nagato asked out of nowhere.

"I'm not supposed to say, sorry."

"But it's not classified?"

"It's technically not."

Nagato frowned. "Then why did you and Minato come back later than everyone else?"

"That is very, very classified, like I'd have to kill you if your guess came anywhere near the truth."

"That kind of classified doesn't exist. Not for ANBU."

"It does too exist, you just have never had a clue. Now stop asking questions before you get in trouble."

Nagato was on the right track before, but the last statement confused him—I had never told him to stop asking questions, in fact, I usually encouraged him to ask questions even if I wouldn't or couldn't answer them. Before Nagato could argue, Minato finished getting ready and appeared at my elbow with a bright flash of light, wearing his best uniform.

"Remind Kushina she needs to be at the Hokage tower before the announcement," I told Nagato, then turned my back and started walking away. Minato waved goodbye and followed.

"Now you're just teasing!" Nagato called after us.

"Yup!" I sent over my shoulder, not turning around.

Minato enjoyed the walk, smiling as he greeted anyone he recognized. I followed, slouching with my hands deep in my pockets. It was a habit that put most shinobi on edge and was considered slightly rude, but I didn't bother to change it. It was comfortable.

I knew today would be a good day.

The announcement was scheduled for high noon and I wasn't entirely sure why the Sandaime wanted us there four hours early, but I slouched into the tower on-time anyways.

It turned out the Hokage only wanted us there to make sure we made it. It also put Minato more at ease to pace on the roof and watch the civilians put up decorations in the street. Kagami spent the entire four hours with me in a sealed room drilling the defenses placed around the Hokages into my head and briefing me to the twelve ANBU most regularly on the Sandaime's guard. I probably knew more about the ANBU in question than he did, but I listened patiently.

The protocols were extremely simple, only there so the Hokage didn't have to constantly keep his guard up. Three people guarded him during the daylight hours, then switched, one at a time to the next shift of three, who worked until midnight, and the last shift worked until sunrise. I would take over Minato's protection until I could build my own guard. Kagami made sure to point out that every time the Sandaime dismissed his guard to other tasks, something bad happened, like the invasions and the Hokage walking into Iwa's trap.

For most of the discussion, I knew Minato's reaction to having his movements followed and guarded; I knew he would chafe against it. His ability to teleport away from his guards on a moment's notice would also have to be accounted for.

"This is probably a stupid question, but are they supposed to accompany Minato to the bathroom and watch him sleep, because I might be able to persuade him of everything else, but not that."

Kagami chuckled. "I'm just telling you how I organize the Sandaime's guard, this certainly doesn't have to remain the same for you. Between you, Kushina, and Minato himself, you can probably secure his home well enough that guards are completely unnecessary during the evenings and nights, affording him much more privacy than the Sandaime has ever had."

I nodded.

"This goes unsaid, but you need to keep in very good communication with Minato, especially about what happens when you're impersonating him."

"Obviously."

"You also need to learn his character, habits, techniques, handwriting, everything, inside and out, until you can become him. It's not a comfortable or quick process, on your or Minato's part, and until you master it, the Sandaime and I are going to be present to cover any slips. It was much easier for me, since I didn't have to maintain my own separate identity at the same time, the only person I had enough contact with to notice the difference if I let Hiruzen's personality and habits bleed over was my wife, and she was fully aware of what was going on. Kichiro, you have to keep up appearances in your clan and at the hospital."

"I can disappear into ANBU until—"

"No, ANBU will be able to tell the difference, you're too open in your thoughts and free in your actions. We could stage a massive upheaval in your life to share with the public, but I don't want to do that unless it's absolutely necessary."

"How often will I have to cover for Minato?"

"It depends. I usually spend at least thirty-six hours per week under the hat—to make sure Saru gets enough time to rest and spend time with his wife and kids. ANBU guards me during that time and Saru stays in his home because the security seals prevent anyone from knowing whether he's home. Missions come in about once a month. Saru and I can cover them if you need it. You'll be spending a few hours a week under the hat until you can impersonate Minato. Missions come almost once a month but very few last more than a week. Generally, I take any that last more than four or five days, simply because I can disappear for that long without a replacement and it makes it less likely anyone will notice the switch. Also, if I think the risk to Hiruzen's life is significant enough, I'll take the mission, even if the risk to myself is significantly more."

"Minato won't let me do that."

"Since you're a jinchuuriki, most missions will be less risky for you than they will for Minato. You'll have to determine which risks are worthwhile and which are not. Minato won't tolerate being babied, so you'll have to figure out a different system of determining risks. Saru knows I filter missions but he didn't know for a long time after we set up our arrangement. Neither me nor Saru will tell him, but he'll likely figure it out relatively quickly, but he won't be able to do anything about it without changing the mission assignment system, which he can do, so I'd advise that you never give him a reason to. A team of Chuunin, with several ANBU disguised in it, sort missions by rank. A and S-ranked missions will go directly to you, you will take out the ones that must be given to ANBU or that you will have to take and give the rest to Minato to be distributed. If Minato wants you or ANBU to take a mission, he'll send it back. If you're honest about it, Minato won't be able to say anything. Keep in mind Minato will receive the mission reports. It took a while, but it's gotten to the point where Saru and I have come to compromise so we'll sort the missions the same, so whomever has the time will do it. You and Minato will reach that point eventually, but I strongly advise that you either sort them yourself or sort them with Minato."

Slightly overwhelmed by the amount of information, I took a deep breath. "Understood."

"The rest can wait until tomorrow. You have an hour and a half to do what you want, preferably keep Minato out of trouble."

I nodded and left.

The Sandaime was waiting outside the room and nodded to me. I stopped and held out my hand to him. After a long moment of thought, he took it, shaking it once.

"You can trust us," I assured him.

He didn't answer, aware that the gesture, although nearly meaningless to him, meant much more to me. I tightened my grip for a brief second before letting go.

(-_-)

Public speaking wasn't one of my fears, per say. It was hard to be scared of anything after fighting against people who could control the earth itself, but I certainly didn't enjoy it. With that in mind, it was amazing to watch the Sandaime step out into full view of all the people. From a average person's standpoint, talking to a giant group of people from the roof of a building was an effective way to get a point across. From a shinobi standpoint, it was inviting trouble. For the entire present and future leadership of the village to be standing in an area any decent Chuunin could destroy without breaking a sweat was probably a nightmare for most of the Jōnin and everyone was extra-vigilant because of it. Especially since the daimyo himself was on the roof watching.

"People of Konoha!" The Sandaime began, using chakra to amplify his voice so at least half the village could hear. "People of Konoha!"

Everyone fell silent, which was more than a little eerie for the village.

"It is my pleasure to officially announce, after six years of war, we have finally made peace with our neighbors and are ready to begin the most prosperous, the happiest time this village has ever seen!"

The roars were deafening. The speech itself wasn't special, I had heard many other speeches which were much better in every way. I'd even heard the Sandaime give better speeches.

"We are entering a new age of this village, an age where our children can grow up in peace, where we don't have to fear. For thirty years, I have led this village. I was among the first graduates of our Academy program, I am a child of the age that birthed the hidden villages. Until now, our time has been shaken by war and suffering. I have led this village through its darkest times, I have led this village to the place it is today."

Deafening cheers followed that. In my opinion, it was an extremely egotistical thing to say. Minato stood beside me, stiff and sweating. Over his Jōnin uniform he wore a pure white haori, extremely similar to the haori I ripped off over a decade ago, just without a collar and the sleeves went all the way down to his wrists. On his back, between his shoulder blades, was Konoha's symbol in a deep, blood red.

"However," The Hokage continued. The cheering gradually died down. "However, we are entering a new time of peace and prosperity. My generation has been torn apart by war. It is time for the next generation to mend those rifts and lead us out of the darkness and into the light!"

If possible, the cheers grew even louder. Minato looked at me, more nervous than I had ever seen him. When everyone quieted again, the Hokage continued.

"I am getting on in years, and my time as leader of this wonderful village is up." There was dead silence as everyone started to understand. "My people, I am here today to introduce your new Hokage and, for my last act as Hokage, appoint him as the new leader of this village. Many of you know him, many have met him personally. He's a hero of this village, whose actions have almost singlehandedly won us this war.

"He was born into a small clan, only a handful of members, who all tragically died many, many years ago. Some of you might remember him as an orphan on the streets, an orphan who worked diligently for his food. Eventually, he joined the Academy which immediately recognized as a genius. He made many friends, both shinobi and civilian, never seen without his redheaded sweetheart, a love story everyone has followed."

Those who already knew who the Sandaime was talking about chuckled. Minato flushed, and across the roof, Kushina went just as red.

"His ranking in his class earned him an apprenticeship to my student, Jiraiya. Even though his early shinobi years were shaken by pain and suffering, he never failed to cheer up those around him. He advanced quickly through the ranks, but always remained humble and happy. In this past war, he took the scraps of an army, torn apart by loss, and built them into an unconquerable force, that couldn't even be stopped by its own massacre. It was in this fight he was forced to show his true power, displaying a skill thought to be lost to time and death, the Hiraishin, a jutsu that allows a shinobi to move instantaneously between two points, making him the fastest man alive. With it, he singlehandedly slew a third of Iwa's army."

Cheers gradually rose in volume, the Hokage shouting over them.

"He is the Yellow Flash of Konoha! Namikaze Minato! Your Yondaime Hokage!"

Minato flashed to the Sandaime's side and pumped his fist in the air once, all nervousness perfectly hidden behind a smile. Slowly and deliberately, he turned towards the Sandaime, who placed the hat on his head and presented him to the village with a deep bow. I didn't realize it was possible for the cheers to get louder. The Sandaime stepped down, out of sight of the crowds, then behind the line of cheering Jōnin on the roof.

I wasn't sure why, but Tsunade wasn't up on the roof with us, so I stepped back out of the line to heal the inevitable damage the Sandaime did to his vocal cords while everyone else cheered. He sat down, just out of sight of everyone except ANBU.

"You alright?" I asked when I finished, there was absolutely no reason for him to sit down. Minato prepared to speak.

Something didn't feel right. "Cover me, Genjutsu." He said, barely audible.

I wrapped a Genjutsu around us that made it look like the Sandaime stood up and we were talking, then layered a second Genjutsu on top of it to make it look like we didn't want to be eavesdropped on.

When I finished, the Sandaime managed to say "Poison," then slumped backwards, his breathing shallow. I put my hand on his chest to begin healing. It was one of the most complicated poisons I ever encountered. Instead of treating the symptoms, I was forced to break down the compound itself to stop him from suffocating.

By the time I finished, I tracked the source of the poison to a senbon in the back of his calf that could only have come from the ground behind him. The only problem was unless he was poisoned before his speech, which I knew wasn't the case, the poison was too quick to have been administered before Minato appeared beside him. The second problem was I had been watching him the entire time and not once had anyone been at an angle to throw the senbon, even from their feet, no one had been close enough.

By the time Minato finished speaking, I finished and the Sandaime was fine, if a bit groggy.

I ended the Genjutsu with the Sandaime sitting down to watch the proceedings then went to check on Minato, trying to figure out a way to do so without drawing any attention to the fact. Luckily, I didn't have to, Kushina grabbed me as soon as I was close enough and unexpectedly pulled me into a hug with Minato. I faked a stumble, which forced Kushina to shift to catch me, pinning my hand between her and Minato's stomachs. Both felt the medic chakra from my hand, and it remained unseen by the people beginning to push close. To their credit, neither's expressions wavered. They automatically knew something was wrong and understood the importance of pretending nothing was, even if they knew none of the details. Minato grabbed my arm to help me regain my feet, just as I managed to slow the circulation in his left leg from the knee down where a second poisoned senbon was lodged in his calf. It would be extremely uncomfortable for him, but it would stop the poison from spreading.

When his hand tightened on my shoulder, I realized he couldn't walk. Kushina and I barely managed to lift him onto our shoulders to cover for the misstep.

After several minutes of nerve-wracking congratulations, the celebration moved down into the Hokage tower. Everyone was more focused on getting out onto the streets that I was able to pull Minato into an empty meeting room and begin the healing while Kushina guarded the door.

Ten minutes later, I explained the little I knew, assured them I would take care of the problem, and told them to pretend nothing happened while I changed into ANBU gear and fixed the problem. They left, and less than two minutes later, I was masked and in uniform, shadowing Minato. I was a bit more obvious than ANBU was supposed to be, several observant Chuunin noticed me in Minato's shadow. A shadow clone played my part in the festivities. More than once it was dispelled by an over-enthusiastic clap on the back, forcing Minato to awkwardly make an excuse for me.

It was a frustrating afternoon. I knew someone was watching, I could feel it, but either they were better than me or they were biding their time. The latter was much more likely. Minato was a sensor, so if he wasn't picking up a threat and signaling me, then most likely there wasn't an active threat. This only made me even more nervous.

Minato acknowledged countless well-wishers and endless pledges of support as the entire village jockeyed to meet him. He didn't even make it five steps outside the Hokage tower, standing there with the patience and composure of a saint. Several Jōnin flanked Minato so no one came up behind him and I stood in his shadow, a hand on his back so he knew exactly where I was, not that he really needed it. It was sunset before the crowds began to disperse and Minato slipped away. I followed him back to the apartment he had when I first met him. Kushina waited, napping on the child-sized bed in the corner of the room.

"You hung on to this place?" I asked in disbelief as he woke Kushina and set his hat on the bed.

"This place went to hell shortly after the previous war. I bought the entire building after the landlord gave up on trying to get someone to rent rooms, it has almost no commodities so no one's interested. I've been renting rooms to orphans at the Academy for almost nothing until they can afford to move elsewhere."

"So, you're going to move back here?"

Kushina woke up, glanced at me, then turned over and laid her head in Minato's lap and closing her eyes.

"No, I already own an apartment near the gates, got it years ago, when Noriko started training, so Kushina and I had a place to put our more dangerous seals. I'm just going to move there, Kushina will probably come with."

"Good luck figuring out whose uniforms are whose."

Minato sighed and wrapped his arms around Kushina and hugged her tightly, more like a stuffed animal than an actual person. Rolling her eye, Kushina sat up, squirming until she could hug him back. "I'm so exhausted, are you ever going to tell me what the fuss was earlier?"

I pulled out a privacy seal and stuck it on the bed next to him. "Someone poisoned you and the Sandaime while you were speaking, I've been on your six making sure it doesn't happen again. Beats me how they managed it."

"The danger?"

"Minimal, but they're still out there and watching, I just can't pinpoint them."

"Brilliant, how are you going to handle it?"

"I don't know, I have to talk to Kagami."

"But you don't want to leave me to do so."

"Exactly."

"I can stay here—"

"It's not secure, I'm going to—"

"I'll come with you to meet him, he's probably with the Sandaime."

"Are you like Minato's bodyguard or something?" Kushina asked.

"I'm getting put in charge of ANBU, so that makes me responsible, even though it's not official yet."

"Odd profession for a medic."

I shrugged. "I'd rather figure this out sooner rather than later," I told Minato.

He nodded but didn't move.

Kushina opened an eye and looked at me. "I think I'm ready to accept the offer of a place in ANBU."

"It wasn't my offer, so you're going to have to pass the new test."

"You're biased."

"Very. Minato, can we please go?"

There was an ANBU meeting already planned that started in five minutes, not that Minato knew about it.


	79. Chapter 79

Minato sighed and all of us stood up. I put on a Henge to hide my ANBU uniform. The three of us walked out of the building.

"Mikoto!" Kushina said suddenly, causing me to flinch at the fact she was inches behind me. A black-haired Uchiha woman on the other side of the somewhat empty street and walking away from us turned around, holding tight to a tightly wrapped, largish bundle in her arms. She glanced back the way she was headed before hurrying across the street to us. When she got close enough, I could hear weak crying coming from the blankets.

"Is something wrong?" I asked, stopping Kushina before she could jump on the harried and slightly pregnant woman.

She glanced between Minato and Kushina before her eyes stopped on me. "What are you three doing in this part of town?"

"It's one of our old haunts from when we were kids," Kushina answered.

"Is there somewhere else—?" She asked, uncomfortable, repeatedly glancing at my hip where my mask was attached to my belt beneath the Henge.

"There's a training ground a block behind us or a restaurant due north," I answered readily.

"Training ground," she decided, still glancing at me every other second.

Minato and Kushina turned to lead the way. Mikoto grabbed my arm, disrupting the Henge. I put it back up a split second later, narrowing my eyes at her, but she already hurried to follow Minato and Kushina. She knew who I was, she had no reason to verify my identity, but I didn't protest it.

When we arrived, she unwrapped part of the bundle in her arms so we could see the face of the child she held. I recognized Itachi immediately. I had been by their house several times as part of my sporadic ANBU patrols over the past year. Every time, the boy was out in their backyard training. Most of the time, he looked up to watch me land on the roof of their house. I would break protocol and wave to him every time he noticed me, a feat many Jōnin couldn't accomplish.

It was extremely odd to see him swaddled and crying. Twice, my arrival had distracted him and he hurt himself. Slightly guilty, I would stop and heal him before moving on. I was fairly certain his parents didn't know about it or were unaware of my identity. Fugaku had stopped by the Hokage tower several times trying to figure out who was on patrol, but I never asked if he was looking for me or a clumsy ANBU.

"He's been crying for the past hour and he just doesn't cry," Mikoto explained. "As far as I can tell, he's not injured or sick, he's just cold."

"May I?" I held out my arms to take him. It was winter, I was almost convinced the boy was just sick. She hesitated, then handed him over. They crying intensified as I sat down and unwrapped the blanket enough so I could see him. He only quieted when I started diagnostics on him, teary eyes opening and searching for his mother.

"K-ka-san," he said and Mikoto quickly knelt beside his head, carding her fingers through his hair.

"Ka-san is right here, Ita-chan. Chiro-sensei is going to help you feel better. Kushina-san is here too, you remember her? She's Chiro-sensei's little sister." The ANBU tattoo on my shoulder burned with summons.

"Itachi-kun, can you tell me what you're feeling?" I asked. I didn't really have to, I recognized the compound in his system. It was the oil most shinobi used to maintain their weapons. It wasn't able to be absorbed through the skin but several Genin had been reported to have drank it by accident or by a dare. In small doses it wasn't at all dangerous, at least not to older Genin, but somehow almost a bottle's worth had made it directly into his bloodstream.

Itachi didn't answer my question.

"Someone get me a cup or a bowl or something to hold fluid," I said. A few seconds later, Kushina handed me a metal bowl generally used for mission food.

I hated treating children for poisonings. It was practically impossible to extract the poison from their bloodstream, their veins were so tiny and they were so easily scared. I had two options, extract it from the vein in his neck or from the one in his thigh, otherwise it would take far too long to filter his blood. He was wearing long pants, so taking it from his neck would be much easier. The Konoha climate was temperate, but it was still too cold for me to unbundle the boy for more than a minute or two.

He started crying again as I wrapped the blanket so it pinned his arms and tightly bound his knees to his chest. "Let go of him, please," I told Mikoto. Itachi started to struggle as I grabbed the back of his head and turned him so he lay perpendicular to me, his feet against my stomach.

I held him down with my other forearm and pressed my thumb over the artery in his neck, the bowl underneath his neck. A very thin stream of oil, tinged red, ran down my thumb, across my hand and dripped off my little finger, into the bowl. Kushina was the only person to keep her head and start scanning the surrounding area for threats. After a full minute, the bowl was half-full and Itachi was starting to struggle hard enough for the blanket to begin to loosen.

"What is that?" Mikoto demanded, horrified. Minato picked up the bowl.

"Weapon oil," he answered, looking a little green.

"How did it get inside of him?" No one had an answer to that. I didn't share my theories.

I loosened the blanket, still holding tight to Itachi, my hand against his back and repairing the damage to his kidneys, which nearly failed on him.

It was almost fifteen minutes past the time we were supposed to be at the ANBU meeting.

Finally, I fixed enough so Itachi wasn't going to get sick again and released him to his mother. "I'll come check on him soon to make sure he's fine."

"Thank you, Uzumaki-san," Mikoto said as we stood up.

"No problem, don't let him train until I clear him."

Mikoto nodded, picked up the blanket and wrapped it around Itachi, then left without another word.

"Kushina, can you take this to the hospital as evidence?" Minato asked, holding out the bowl.

She nodded and followed Mikoto.

Minato turned towards me. "Didn't you say we had to be somewhere?"

"Yes," I grabbed his wrist and shunshined to ANBU headquarters, landing at the front of the empty meeting room. Only Kagami was pacing along one of the walls.

"What kept you?" He asked.

"Itachi-kun somehow got more than a little weapon oil into his bloodstream."

"Fugaku's kid?"

"Yeah."

"I'm assuming someone tried to kill him?"

"I didn't say as much, but his mother could read between the lines, she'll keep him close."

"In ten minutes, I'm appointing you head of ANBU, what are you going to do about the problem then?"

"Put two ANBU on her and Itachi and one with each of the children of any clan heads in the village. I'll assign an investigative team to Itachi-kun's case."

"And when Fugaku claims you're stepping on the toes of the Military Police? This is shinobi crime, it's his jurisdiction."

"Itachi was the third known poisoning in less than six hours, albeit different poisons were used. I think there's at least two more. The crime included Minato and the Sandaime, which makes it ANBU. Whoever poisoned him wanted him to die with an audience, but they didn't count on me."

"They're connected?"

"Most likely, since Mikoto was walking past at that particular moment."

"Fugaku's not going to let that go, he'll want vengeance for his son."

"Then I'll politely remind him that his son is four years old and still recovering, his wife is terrified, and his position as clan head and connection to Minato put Itachi-kun in harm's way to begin with."

"What about when he reminds you that you have no experience?" I could smell the test from a mile away. He wanted to know if I would consider the consequences.

"I'll inform him that his brother is on the case."

"His brother is in a coma in the hospital."

"I'll fix him."

"Tsunade already—"

"I'm not Tsunade." Tsunade was good, but just like most other medics, she had her specialties. Chakra and the brain were touchy and I was the only medic who had reliable success when it came to head injuries.

"Kichiro—"

"You could always head the investigation yourself."

"You're a brat."

"Did I pass?"

"With flying colors."

"Good, now, I would like to go check on the two other most likely targets, you can take it from here? Postpone the announcement a few hours? Thanks, bye!" I tried to run off, but Kagami grabbed my collar.

"Not so quick, Minato will go check on the potential victims, give him names."

I gritted my teeth.

"He can use Hiraishin and make it back in five minutes, untraceable."

"Sarutobi Kenshin and Uzumaki Hitomi."

Kagami and Minato frowned in confusion. "Why them? There's a million people in this village—" Minato began.

"There's actually a bit more than half that, but both are the same age as Itachi, there is no doubt all three will become shinobi, and all three have a habit of running off and training by themselves, making them easy targets. They're connected to Minato, targeting all three will be sure to distract Minato with looking after them, giving the responsible person or team time to finish off their job. There might be several others, but I'm almost certain of those two because they're the most likely places an outsider would look for Minato."

"The Sandaime is probably with Kenshin-kun at the moment," Kagami noted.

"He's a target too, but he has guards. Minato doesn't yet."

"And who are you going to appoint?"

"Roach has a kid, but still insists on staying in ANBU, so I'm going to reassign him so his kid doesn't spend the rest of his life in ANBU like his father. Koala, Duck, and Toad will take the first twenty-four hours with Roach, thy can divide shifts among themselves."

"Roach and Toad have significantly less experience."

"Both have been in ANBU longer than me, you really can't say anything about it, hell, Roach was an agent before I made Genin, so shut it."

"Don't I get a say?" Minato asked.

"No," Kagami answered

"Depends on the suggestion," I compromised.

"Take from the general shinobi corps as well."

"Good idea, then you can—"

"No," Kagami responded flatly.

Minato and I looked at him, confused. "Why not?"

"Moving the Hokage's protection out from under the purview of ANBU will destabilize—"

"It won't destabilize anything, not even I knew the Sandaime had legitimate guards," I responded. "I've channeled the Kyuubi's chakra several times in his office, the supposed guards came into the room at the disturbance, I assumed they were guarding the entire tower, they've only been in the room when the Sandaime knew I was going to get pissed and could potentially lose control. You forget that I am a sensor."

Kagami frowned.

"No one really knows about it, a few people might be aware it exists, but they don't talk about it either. Once the original thrill of taking elite missions wears off, no one really talks about their missions or assignments, none of the younger agents were on the guard, so no one talked."

Minato continued: "I don't want to be worshipped as invincible and infallible, I'd rather be loved and respected as who I am. The message I want to send is that we're stronger united, that has to include me."

"It gives enemies hope—" Kagami tried to protest.

"Minato singlehandedly decimated the Iwa army in one go. They smashed us twice, we came back three times as strong each time, when the damages were calculated, they sustained twice as much, hell, they knew we held back. I only used the Kyuubi to counter another Bijū, I could have walked all over them. Naomi and I infiltrated one of the camps. They were trying to decide what to do when, not if, I came out full force on the offensive."

"Kichiro wasn't there for the worst of it. After the second massacre and my retaliation, they were scrambling for a way to stop me. When Iwa finally realized Kushina, Kichiro, and the other generals were _decoys_ they sued for peace in an instant. Individually, enough of us were off the charts to cause them a lot of trouble. Together, they didn't even want to think about it."

"It won't work."

"Not the way you want it," Minato said firmly.

Kagami crossed his arms. The door opened and ANBU started filing in. "Have you even had a chance to talk about this yet?"

"No," I answered.

"A word of advice, even if you agree on every damn thing, make sure you discuss it before you act, at least whenever possible."

"Understood," Minato and I chorused.

After a full minute of him holding eye contact with each of us, Kagami turned towards the assembled ANBU. "Now that enough people are here, I'm announcing my retirement after nearly thirty years."

Protests erupted almost immediately. One ANBU stepped forward, Panda, raising his voice above the rest. "A change in leadership is the last thing we need!" He snapped. "With the new Hokage who—"

"Silence!" Kagami bellowed. Minato and I stood stiffly off to the side. "I will be appointing my successor, who is someone each and every one of you know, someone who knows each of you and has been monitoring your missions, training, abilities, and health for a long time. Though young, he is undoubtedly one of the strongest shinobi in the village. Uzumaki Kichiro, codename Fox, will be the new ANBU General until such time as he resigns, dies, or is replaced by the Hokage, effective immediately."

The wave of killing intent suddenly directed at me caught me off-guard. I stopped breathing for what felt like ages, stiff with fear. I felt the urge to push back, to show them I wouldn't be intimidated. I suppressed it and forced myself to take a calm step forward, standing with my feet shoulder width apart and my hands at my sides, in full view of everyone in the room. Minato watched me carefully, hiding his hands deep in his pockets to hide the trembling. Kagami was distinctly unaffected.

Eventually, the killing intent started to falter and eventually faded as the ANBU assembled glanced at each other in confusion. It was very hard to threaten and intimidate someone who acted like they didn't care, it was especially difficult to pick a fight with someone who didn't react. They found themselves up against both problems at once.

I made eye contact with everyone in the room, one by one, holding it until they looked away. I didn't care how long it took. I won their respect as a medic by being a hardheaded kid who genuinely cared about each of them. I hunted down at least half of ANBU and showed up in the middle of several missions when people skipped out on appointments with me—very few of them skipped more than their first appointment. I was going to win their respect as their leader without a single word, no matter how long it took.

It must have been at least an hour before the last person broke eye contact with me. I had their attention, their respect.

"Most of you have read at least one file on me, many of you know more about me than you should. So be it. There are any number of ways I can gain your respect. I don't give a damn if you don't like me. All I care about is that you trust me to make the decisions I need to and I can trust you to help me follow through with them." I waited a long minute. "Dismissed."

They started to file out. Minato stepped forward and patted my back twice before turning to Kagami and engaging him. I couldn't quite make out what they were saying, but I knew it was about me.

When the room stopped moving, a handful of agents remained. Roach slouched beside the door with Nagato. I recognized Rat, Panda, and Rabbit clustered in front of the podium. I jumped down to talk to them.

"What's up?" I asked.

Rat stepped forward. "Six kids have come down with the same affliction since Yondaime-sama's inauguration."

"Damnit. Identities?"

"Two from the Uchiha clan, you've already treated the younger. One from each the Sarutobi, Uzumaki, Inuzuka, and Hyuuga clans."

"And my son," Rabbit added, "I came here to find you."

"Symptoms?"

"Lethargic, uncharacteristic incessant crying, otherwise the medics can't figure it out."

Minato grabbed my arm. "I'll take you."

"Roach, with me, the rest of you, get the kids to the hospital—"

"What the hell is going on," Panda demanded. "I have a grandson their age."

"Someone is poisoning kids with connections to Minato, trying to distract him. As I was saying, get the kids to the hospital and start giving them fluids, nothing else, no medicine whatsoever, and get the medics to stop pumping them with chakra or I won't be able to help." Panda and Rabbit took off, Nagato had vanished during my orders. "Rat, go through the village, check on young kids who are supposed to become shinobi and have a habit of training alone, especially clan kids and those not yet articulate enough to give a complete report. Any unsupervised kids, bring to their parents or a nearby shinobi." He left in a hurry. "Roach, I want you guarding Minato as Bird. Don't go to any extreme length to hide yourself, just make sure it's clear that somebody has his back."

Minato put a hand on Roach's shoulder, and as soon as he pulled his mask on and I applied a Henge to cover my ANBU uniform, Minato teleported us to the waiting room of the hospital. I hurried off, looking for the youngest chakra signatures. They were clustered in a room on the third floor with a parent or two. One of the parents, I recognized Hizashi, was berating a poor medic who probably had no clue what was going on. The girl was nearly in tears trying to explain.

"Enough!" I snapped. "Parents, calm down, I know exactly what the problem is, but I need your cooperation. Your kids are not going to stop crying, they're in incredible pain right now, someone attempted to poison them. Stay calm and stay put, it will be several more hours before they are in any real danger, but in order to avoid compounding problems, they need to be treated as soon as possible."

Rabbit, dressed in a normal kunoichi uniform, hurried in cradling her son.

"Are there any minor clans or civilians here?" No answer. "Good. Parents, one at a time, get a mat and a hospital gown out of the bin behind me. When I get to you, I need you to have your child's shirt changed into the hospital gown. Lay them down on their backs and hold them still, force them if you have to. I'm going to manually filter the poison out of their blood, which means I'll need access to a major vein or artery. Until I get to you, I need you to monitor your child's pulse and breathing, just like how you were taught in the Academy. If either changes drastically, remain calm and verbally notify me of the change."

Bat, Lizard, and Rooster appeared behind me.

"If you cannot remain calm, you will be escorted out by ANBU and someone will take your place. Before anyone challenges me, yes, I am wearing a Henge, the uniform I had on is not suitable for the hospital."

Any competent shinobi would be able to read between the lines, if they didn't already know I was ANBU. Nagato ran in carrying his second-youngest sibling and followed by two more sets of terrified parents with more children.

"Someone tell them what to do!" I barked out and knelt beside the nearest child who was ready. A medic handed me a medium-sized bean-shaped dish, which I put beside the child. The mother held the girl's arm straight out to give me access to the blood vessels under her arm. I ran a quick diagnostics to verify the problem before beginning. I finished in just over a minute, standing up and letting the medic behind me take the dish half-full of oil and tinged with blood as evidence.

I moved to the next child.

"Are there any other medics who can help?" A man demanded behind me.

"No," I snapped back, "This technique is something I've developed recently and haven't taught to anyone yet."

"How recently?" Someone challenged.

"Today. Tow shut up and let me concentrate."

"I will not have an experiment—"

"Unless you want me to wait for your child's body to process the shit that was put into it and treat the resulting problem, only ever been seen in adults, but the treatment is tried-and-tested, which will cause ten times the pain and twice recovery time, fine. I can give your child the alternative treatment, but they're going to have to wait until last because I'm not going to endanger the rest of the children here because of you."

"I'll take the new treatment," they subsided. I didn't even know who was spoken. The healing already put a dent in my reserves.

"Someone get the youngest competent medic we have in here to start looking at their kidneys and liver, ANBU get Uchiha Itachi in here, I just thought of a potential complication, and notify the Yondaime that I was wrong about the purpose of targeting the kids—they're distracting and exhausting me instead. He'll know what to do."

The attending medics jumped to the order, and two of the ANBU hurried out. I moved on to the next patient, never spending more than two minutes at each. Nagato hovered in the back, waiting until last as even more parents carrying children filed in.

When I reached little Noboru, I was at a quarter of my reserves and most of the shinobi present picked up on my exhaustion. The room was significantly quieter, only sniffling instead of crying. Several children slept against their parents.

From there, I went back through, running diagnostics and giving as much healing as I could, until I could barely stay on my feet. When the kids started falling asleep, I let the Henge drop, hiding my mask in my medic pouch.

I didn't stop until several of the medics stopped me before I could move on to the next child. Someone grabbed the back of my neck and Biwako stood in front of me.

"We don't need an extra patient, take a step back and rest, I can handle this from here. Go sit next to Nagato, the boy isn't taking things very well."

I nodded. Nagato put a hand on my back as I sat down, and with a burst of chakra into a seal that made everyone flinch, knocked me out, causing me to slump toward him.

* * *

 _Author's note: I had about ten things I wanted to say in this note, but then I realized no one reads them, especially when they're long, so I'll make it short:_

 _Check out the sidestories for more!_

 _Don't forget to leave a review!_


	80. Chapter 80

I woke up on my back several hours later with Noboru and Hitomi, the two Uzumaki children there, nestled on my right. Voices discussed something on the opposite side of the room. My chakra was at about half-full, so I sat up and put a hand on Hitomi's chest, running diagnostics. She stirred, but quickly went back to sleep, fingers tangled in my uniform.

I kept quiet as I moved around the room so as not to draw anyone's attention. Most of the kids were better, their kidneys just a bit clogged. I cleared as much as I could, but there were at least three dozen children, so I couldn't do anywhere near as much as I wanted if I wanted to do something to treat them all—at least not while using a brand-new technique. Not even during the war had I taxed myself in such a way.

Eventually, the adults noticed me. I rudely ignored Nagato's half-hearted attempts to get me to take it easy. Kushina showed up briefly, but when they asked her to talk to me, she shrugged, murmured an update on the investigation in my ear, and left, taking Nagato with her. I stayed there with the kids until all of them were clear to head home in the morning. Misaki and Akashi, the two youngest orphans to survive the Uzu massacre, picked up me and the Uzumaki kids as we left the hospital. I put my arms around their shoulders, leaning on them a bit more than I wanted to as we made our way home.

The children insisted on walking themselves home, and nearly made it, but Hitomi didn't protest when I picked her up and let her curl against my chest. Akashi picked up Noboru while Misaki put her arm around my waist. She didn't let go when I released her and entered the house, but I ignored it and smiled as several kids came running down the hall to greet us, still in their pajamas. I excused myself as soon as I could and flopped down in the first available bed to get some real sleep, someone activated the privacy seal for me.

Several hours later, I woke up, ghosted through the house and went upstairs to shower, then hurried back to handle the rest of the incident.

I arrived just as Roach was deciding what to do with three incapacitated would-be assassins, attempting to trap and kill me, not Minato. I took his place as Minato's guard so Roach could hand his captives over to the interrogation department, most of whom were running on a short fuse with a hangover after the celebrations. I pitied all involved, it wasn't going to make for a pleasant afternoon.

Minato looked like he hadn't slept at all and Kushina was nodding off by the wall. The Sandaime looked annoyed with them both.

"Kichiro, finally someone functional, how about I explain this to you and you deal with them."

Scratch that, the Sandaime was pissed with them and I was walking in blind.

"Both of you, go get some sleep," the Sandaime ordered.

They obliged, hurrying out of the room. The Sandaime glanced at the corner of the room and Kagami followed.

"What's going on?" I asked.

Thus began a mind-numbingly boring morning. The Sandaime drilled at least a thousand protocols into my head, and if it wasn't for the _extensive_ memory exercises I went through for my original training and as a part of regular ANBU training, I could never have remembered it all.

What was worse was that I would have to teach it to Minato later.

The Hokage looked much too cheerful to be headed home at noon. "Today is Sunday and the Hokage office is closed on Sunday to prevent the burnout of the Hokage and staff. Any questions?"

The look he gave me made it very clear that I would very much regret any questions that came to mind.

"In that case, I'm headed home to spend some long-overdue time with my family, Kami help the person who disrupts it."

I was left with trying to organize everything to keep the village running.

(-_-)

For Minato and I, adjusting to life as Hokage and ANBU General respectively went far smoother than anyone anticipated.

No one could deny that Minato was _impossibly amazing_ at his job. If anyone had been born to the position, he had. On the other hand, I was run ragged. If it was just guarding Minato, just directing ANBU, or just keeping up semi-regular shifts at the hospital, I would have been fine. Doing all three left me four hours of sleep at most, and I never had more than a few minutes alone at a time.

On the new year, Minato and Kushina were married. The next day, they dragged me out of bed on the only day of the entire month I could have gotten a full night's sleep, to tell Kushina of the arrangement between Minato and me. The day after, Kushina applied to ANBU.

She passed the requirements for ANBU with flying colors, and immediately began rubbing her scores in mine and Nagato's faces. After she _somehow_ managed to get her hands on our scores, when we were eleven and six, it was beyond annoying, especially since I significantly raised the bar so no one under the age of thirteen could even hope to meet the minimum requirements, mostly because I added the weight criteria. She wouldn't even listen to the point that she was now older than the two of us had been, combined, with ten times the experience we had, combined, than when we took the exams. She only shut up when I pointed out she was nearly ten years older than the average recruit age. I stuck her on Minato's guard instead of letting her on the 'cool' missions, at least until she realized there was absolutely nothing in ANBU to be celebrated, aside from the rare event of someone voluntarily leaving the program. I also assigned her the mask 'Butterfly' because I was immature enough and had the authority. She didn't appreciate it, but I reminded her that she was at the very bottom of ANBU ranks and I was at the very top.

In early January, the first kage-level mission crossed my desk. Unfortunately, Minato was in my ANBU office with me reading over my shoulder and talking to the back of my head about something to do with rewriting the Academy curriculum. He tried to snatch the scroll out of my hand with a shout of 'mine!' I barely managed to move it out of his immediate reach in time.

"This is my mission, Minato, I'm getting a break from all this shit and you can't stop me."

A brief struggle ensued, but I had a much stronger grip than him and far fewer compunctions about where my elbows and knees went in said struggle. Minato backed off pretty quick, especially when two younger agents walked in to see him about to bite down on my wrist.

He failed miserably at attempting to regain his dignity. "Kakashi, Obito, and Rin are in that area right now on a separate mission. Check up on them, will you?"

"Yeah, of course, though, I have to ask, why are the three of them still a team?"

Minato chuckled. "Obito's experience with Natsuki during the war was less than pleasant, the same goes for Kakashi, and Rin claimed she'd chop her hands off if I didn't get her out on the field. Whatever you did to her while we were fighting Iwa kicked her into gear and her fighting abilities are solid Chuunin level now. The three of them decided they liked each other more than their alternative teammates and went through proper channels and everything to put themselves together about six months ago, I had no hand in it. Now, they're inseparable."

"Good to hear."

"Have you been keeping up at all?"

"Aside from family, ANBU, and close friends, not really."

"Go take the damn mission."

I saluted, grabbed my mission kit from beneath my desk, which used to be Kagami's—I could still smell him on the wood—and took off, leaving him with the mess of paperwork and two fifteen-year-olds who didn't know whether to laugh or pretend they didn't see anything.

The mission was straightforward, there were Bijū sightings near the Kiri-Konoha border, just south of the Uzushiogakure ruins. My job was to investigate and prevent the Bijū from getting anywhere near the Land of Fire.

It was an easy mission. By the time I got to the place of the sighting, the Bijū was long gone. Kurama confirmed it was the Sanbi and I found evidence of a successful sealing site about thirty miles north, on the shores of the Land of Fire, directly across from Uzu's ruins, less than a mile from where I landed with the other orphans, eighteen years before. I had run across the dock where we landed and the shack where we stayed for several hours while I tracked the Sanbi. I found the corpse of a Kiri shinobi, whose body was saturated with Bijū chakra, a former Jinchuuriki, as well as eight more bodies, killed from a mixture of Bijū chakra poisoning and tantō and shuriken wounds. The weapons had been gathered, the bodies stripped of potential supplies, and all but the former Jinchuuriki, who was still to toxic for anyone but another Jinchuuriki to touch, had been laid in a neat row. They had been killed by Konoha shinobi less than a day before, the new Jinchuuriki had been taken away—I was unsure of by whom. Nothing had been done to the sealing site itself, Konoha shinobi knew better than to mess with seals.

After finishing the investigation, destroying the seal site and Bijū chakra, I took a detour to Uzu and walked around the island for the rest of the day. Soon after the massacre, Konoha shinobi had come and burnt the victims just outside the village. Their bleached bones had lain undisturbed. Kushina had been here since, and on a giant plaque of red granite, she had carved the names of everyone who had died in the massacre. She had been back twice to add names. I couldn't bring myself to go with her.

I spent most of the night kneeling in front of the stone and reciting the names of everyone who died in the pointless slaughter.

I went to the houses of the adults who survived and picked up a few things for each of them. Somehow, very little had been stolen, the houses had just fallen to ruin. Kushina didn't remember her way around the village when she came, so she never explored, but I stopped by the orphanage and picked through the dilapidated structure until I found the room where Kushina and I had lived. Tucked beneath what had been my pathetic excuse for a mattress, made even more pathetic from time and exposure, was a sketched picture of the four of us as a family. It was preserved inside a piece of glass, a seal and a bit of writing on the back. I had never told Kushina about it, just like I had never told her anything about our parents, at least I didn't before my father was found. Then, there were no more secrets. To my surprise, she understood and respected my decision, even if she did lose some of the idol-worship she held for me. I wasn't perfect after all.

I even stopped by my father's house, which had been sealed for me and Kushina once we came of age. It had been destroyed in the massacre, but a trunk, which held mine and Kushina's baby clothes was still intact. At the bottom was a small album of sketches by my parents. The first few were of my father growing up, teaching a little girl to mend a pair of shorts, playing a game with Ise as a child, leaning over a Fūinjutsu array, and in the middle of a massive water jutsu. I finally understood how Fusō and Ise recognized me so easily; I was a carbon-copy of him—at least, a copy of how he used to look. The next one was borderline inappropriate, my father sprawled facedown across a bed, fast asleep with the corner of a sheet barely covering his bare ass. After, my mother meditating on the beach, the ocean waves lapping around her waist. Kushina looked just like her when she meditated, untouchable, immovable, not even the ocean itself could faze her. The image after was of my father. It was terrifying. He was cowering in a corner, scars and still-bleeding wounds in excruciating detail. His eyes stared out of the page, unfocused, screaming, a bloody kunai in his hand—a kunai frighteningly similar to Minato's. Ise crouched in the side of the picture, holding his bleeding side and trying to talk to my father. On several spots, the paper was warped and stiff, as if tears had fallen on it and were left to dry.

The next two were of my mother, pregnant. The first was her, stomach noticeably large, slumped over a table, asleep, half-cleared dirty dishes on the table around her. It was drawn in thick, dark ink. Opposite her, sitting at the table was a vaguely humanoid smear of ink in front of a barely-touched plate of food. The one after couldn't have been more different. She was sitting in a rocking chair and staring out what I assumed was a window, judging from the light on her face. The next image was of a sickly infant clinging to a worn out stuffed blob, the blob I vaguely remembered Kushina sleeping with until it was lost in the massacre.

The next image was of the infant, me, lying on my father's chest and grinning sleepily as he snored bare chested on the floor beneath me, impossibly dark circles around his eyes and his face haggard. The scars on his chest corresponded to the injuries in the earlier picture and scars I still knew he carried. The amount of detail in the image showed me that, even without any color in the image, the scars were thick and vivid instead of pale and faded like I knew them to be. There was another picture of my mother pregnant and playing with me on the floor, then a portrait of the whole family. The next was of me, not even two years old, attempting to change Kushina's diaper with some success, Kushina's hands smeared with what looked like poop and a glob of it in my hair. My mother was slumped on the couch in the background, dark circles around her eyes and an arm in a sling. There was another of me teaching Kushina to climb a thin tree while my father hovered a few steps away watching anxiously with an expression that made it clear we were in trouble. How we even managed to get into the tree was beyond me since Kushina was still wearing a diaper and barely looked old enough to walk. I suspected neither parent knew either. The last image looked like a small party, but I couldn't tell if it was mine, Kushina's or if we had celebrated together. Kushina and I were in the center of the picture leaning over what looked like a seal. Kneeling behind us was my mother with a very noticeable baby bump. The rest of the book, over three quarters of it, was blank. I closed the book and sealed it away, trying not to think about the last image—especially the sibling we never had.

After my stay in Uzu, I went back to the site of the sealing and followed the most probable route for the Konoha shinobi to take home. I planned on asking around for Minato's team, but the potentially uncontrollable Jinchuuriki pushed it out of my mind, especially since I wasn't sure if the Konoha ninja were responsible. Kiri could burn from the stupidity of attempting a sealing, but sometimes Konoha ninja had to be protected from their own stupidity when it came to playing with fūinjutsu. Kushina usually handled it, but on rare occasions like this, it was my responsibility. I took a steady, if fast pace, for two days. I was reminded of the promise to check up on Minato's students when I heard frantic screaming, a girl's voice or a very young boy's, just off the route. I automatically took a detour to investigate it, double checking my mask and any other identifiable features were hidden, including my sticks, instead, I strapped the katana and tantō in an X on my back.

My blood ran cold when I realized who it was, and I had a very strong hunch on what happened.

Rin knelt in a clearing wearing Obito's spare uniform, crying and throwing everything she could get her hands on at the two boys. I took off my mask and appeared between them.

"What is going on?" I demanded, my voice as commanding as I could.

Kakashi and Obito started to report at once and I parsed through the panic, slightly frustrated. I _knew_ Minato trained them better than that. I had trained them better than that.

Even so, I gathered that Rin had been kidnapped on a routine communications exchange. She had been carrying the communications, so there was no question on the importance of retrieving her, even if Obito didn't have his crush on her and Kakashi wasn't anywhere near as anal as I remembered from the original story. He genuinely cared about his teammates in his own roundabout way and he was currently in a rebellious phase and held less respect for rules or protocols than I ever did, to the point where it even frustrated me on occasion. Everyone was always quick to remind me of the stunts I pulled whenever I complained about Kakashi.

Kakashi and Obito finished, but Rin hadn't said a word, aside from throwing a kunai and several rocks at me to make her thoughts very clear. The last time I spoke to her directly was during the war to stop her from trying to talk down the survivor of one of Iwa's ambushes from taking revenge, so it was a bit unnerving to feel her anger. It was much worse for the boys. Their teammate had gone haywire on them and was shouting the most hurtful things she could in an attempt to drive them away. They were stuck between the hammer and the anvil, they wanted to storm away, hurt, confused, and angry, but they couldn't abandon a comrade, a teammate, especially her.

I snapped at Rin to explain herself, but she just raged about monsters and killing us. Instead of pressing for answers I knew she wouldn't give, I sent out a pulse of chakra to verify my hunch. She had the Sanbi sealed inside of her.

"Kakashi, Obito!" I barked. "Report back to the village as fast as you possibly can. Run yourselves to the ground if you have to, but get back to Konoha and give my sister—give Kushina these coordinates and tell her to come prepared for the biggest sealing of her life. Do _not_ , under any circumstances, follow her back here, understood? Go!"

They took off. I turned towards Rin.

"Rin-chan, I know they sealed the Sanbi into you. If you want to keep everyone safe, you _must_ calm down, understand?"

She hiccupped and I sat down where I stood.

"Try to meditate, Rin-chan, steady your breathing."

It took her a long time before she could breathe somewhat normally. It would be at least twelve hours before the boys made it home, and another eight before Kushina could make it back. I didn't know Kiri's sealing style, not enough to strengthen one of their seals, even if I hadn't used up the last of my ink on storage seals for the knickknacks I brought from Uzu.

"Rin-chan, I know a lot about Jinchuuriki seals, I know that they don't break, they are broken."

"Jinchuuriki?"

"A person with a Bijū sealed inside of them. The seals that contain the Bijū fail when the Jinchuuriki loses control of herself."

"It's going to fail, they made it to fail so the monster would destroy Konoha, that I would destroy Konoha! I heard them, I heard them!"

"Your sensei has fought the Sanbi before, Rin-chan, don't you remember? He's even better than he was then and can beat it again, understand?"

"Please, just kill me! I don't want anyone to get hurt!"

"No one is going to get hurt, Rin-chan, you can protect everyone."

"Kill me! Kill it!"

"No!" I snapped back, putting as much power into my voice as I could muster. If she wasn't going to listen to reason, I would try cowing her. My tone shocked her, but not enough, she'd taken my ire and orders plenty of times before. I went back to my original strategy. "Rin-chan, the Sanbi won't escape if you don't want it to. As long as you're confident the seal will hold, it will, I promise."

She just knelt there and cried into her hands.

"Rin-chan, do you know who I am?"

"You're Kushina-sensei's brother, a medic."

"I'm much more than that, what else do you know?"

"Minato-sensei thinks you're really strong."

"Right, what else? What do you know about my clan?"

"They're civilians."

"What else?"

"I don't know, they work for shinobi somehow? I don't know!"

"My clan, the Uzumaki, are known for their seals, everyone in the elemental nations knows about their prowess. I know a lot about seals too."

"You just sent Kakashi and Obito to get your sister!"

"Yes, I did, because I don't have any sealing supplies left."

"No, I've never seen you use seals, not even explosive tags."

"That's because I don't, but I'm an Uzumaki and we all know all about seals, it's in our blood. My sister is the very best in the entire village, probably the entire world."

"I'm going to hurt her—"

"Do you want to hurt her?"

"No! Never!"

"Then you won't, just like you won't hurt me."

"I can hear it, the monster, it's trying to eat me, it's trying to destroy everything!"

"But you're not going to let it, right Rin-chan?"

"I-I can't stop it!"

"Yes, you can. It'll be hard, but you can!"

"I can't—"

"I'm going to crawl towards you, Rin-chan, you're not going to hurt me, the monster isn't going to hurt me because you're stronger than it. You're stronger than the monster and you don't want to hurt me so you're not going to hurt me." When I finished speaking, I was kneeling beside her.

"Please, just kill me, I don't want to hurt anyone."

"I'm not going to hurt you, just like you aren't going to hurt me, Rin-chan. I'm going to help you, I'm going to show you how to control the monster so it doesn't hurt anyone."

She flung her arms around my waist, trembling violently.

A split second later, I felt my tantō leave its sheath. Rin tried to fling herself away from me, the blade pointing towards her chest, but I caught the blade in my hand, ignoring how it bit into my palm and fingers. I yanked it out of her hand, cleaned the blade of my blood with my sleeve, and sheathed it.

I showed her my hand. "I thought you didn't want to hurt anyone," I challenged before starting to heal it.

She collapsed in on herself, her hands clamped over her heart and her head against the ground. "Just kill me, please, I don't want to hurt anyone, please."

She was only fourteen. I wasn't going to kill her. I'd never killed someone under fifteen and I wasn't going to start now.

"If you don't want to hurt anyone, what makes you think I do?"

She just continued begging.

"Rin-chan, look at me, please." She didn't move. "Stand up, ninja!" I barked.

She shot to her feet and I rose with her.

"You're better than this, soldier, get your act together, you sorry excuse for a weapon! I know damn well you're just being a useless coward!"

She burst into tears again. "P-please! Just kill me. I-I can't—" I couldn't make out the rest of what she was saying.

She wasn't going to see reason or listen to me, that fact was very clear now. She had her mind set on dying and there was nothing I could do about that except delay and distract her until Kushina arrived and could strengthen the seal. I had hold on for at least nineteen hours. I wanted to knock her out, but until I saw the seal, I couldn't be sure it wouldn't release the Sanbi.

From several feet away, I could feel the Sanbi's chakra coursing through her. I could help her control it, but in the process of helping, I would destabilize the control she had and I wouldn't be able to regain control fast enough to save her life, especially if she wasn't going to cooperate.

"If you want to die, hurt everyone you know with your death, and abandon everything, fine, I won't stop you, but if you hurt this village, this land, I will. Even if it means my life."

Her head shot up.

"I can stop you blindfolded, with both hands tied behind my back. I've stopped the monster before, I can stop it again. I've controlled monsters three times as powerful as the one you have, I control one on a daily basis, it's what I've been trained to do." That was a bit of an exaggeration, but she didn't know that.

"I don't want to hurt anyone. You hurt people."

She might as well have stabbed me. She looked up at me, brown hair sticking up in odd places, tears streaking her face, fresh ones in her eyes, her fists clenched and whole body trembling.

"You hurt people, you kill them," she snarled at me.

I knew she was trying to hurt me, to drive me away, but damn it all, she was right on the mark, I knew her well enough, I saw her often enough that I couldn't brush off what she was saying because it was true. I had killed in front of her during the war, I might have been protecting her, but I still slaughtered several people right in front of her eyes. My kill count was over six thousand, the second highest in the village. All but a few dozen may have been collateral damage from my fights with other Bijū, but I knew better than anyone the effects I had. Minato was the only person in the village with a higher kill count.

She didn't have a single kill to her name. She was the only person I knew who could look me in the eye and condemn me like that. "Run," she snarled at me. I took a step back. "Run, run and don't come back. Let them hunt you down and slit your throat like the filthy, rabid dog you are!" She screeched the last phrase, forcing me another step back. She glanced around the clearing frantically, snatching up a spilled kunai.

That jarred me back to my senses, even though the pain of her words still suffocated me.

I unbuckled my katana and tantō from my back and tossed them to the side. It was an extremely dangerous move, but it got her attention. My medic pouch, supplies, and senbon holster followed. The only weapons I had left on me were my sticks, arguably my strongest weapon, sealed into the waistband of my uniform, but she had no way of knowing that.

 ** _You are taking a big risk boy,_** the Kyuubi snarled. **_It's going to come back to bite you._**

I ignored him, just like I always did, and took several steps forward, kneeling and looking up at Rin. "If I'm so repulsive to you, then kill me," I said quietly. Blood pounded in my ears as she pressed the knife against my neck. It was the middle of winter and the metal blade was freezing, make me shiver slightly.

I wasn't sure how long she stood there, but eventually, she dropped the blade and fell to her knees, sobbing. I pulled her close and hugged her tightly, forcing aside my own issues and pain. I could only afford to take care of her. The resulting silence lasted for what felt like forever, punctuated by her occasional sobs.

I watched the sun set behind the trees, counting down the hours until Kushina arrived to fix the seal.

Fearfully, I watched the full moon as it rose. **_She's going to have a rough night, we all are,_** the Kyuubi told me. **_The Bijū are restless during the full moon, you know this._**

Rin curled up closer to me. "It's chakra, it hurts, it hurts so much."

Kushina was set to arrive just after dawn, I hoped Rin could hold on until then. Her head rested over my heart, I knew she was focusing on the steady beat and the thrum of chakra to steady herself. I had so much chakra that even civilians could sense it at close range. I turned the chakra across the front of my chest into a diluted form of medical ninjutsu. I didn't dare try and soothe her directly, it would disrupt her control.

"I'm so tired, I'm so, so tired, but it said it would take over if I slept."

"If you let me look at the seal, I can tell you for certain."

She wrapped her arms around her chest, closing Obito' shirt tightly around her neck. "They drugged me and distracted me while they put the seal on, hoping I wouldn't notice what they were actually doing. They—they were all leaning over me and—and—"

"It's okay, you're safe here."

"I'm supposed to talk about it, that's what I'm always supposed to say to the patients at the hospital. I'll have to tell Sensei what went wrong, what happened. He's going to be so upset, he's not going to be able to look at me. It hurt, it hurt, it hurt." She pounded my chest with the blunt end of a kunai to emphasize. I barely felt it through my vest. I loosened my grip on her so she could pull away if she wanted.

"You don't have to tell him, you don't have to tell anyone what happened if you don't want to."

"But I'm supposed to—why didn't you run diagnostics on me?"

"Because if I do, you could die."

"What brought you here?"

"I'm sorry, that's classified."

"I'm so tired, can I sleep here?"

"Not until I have a look at the seal."

She went still then pulled away, turning her back on me.

I waited patiently. After a long minute, her back straightened and she pulled the shirt up and over her head, holding it tightly against her front and exposing her back to me.

In bold, dark lines, the seal glowed on her back. Kiri's sealing style resembled the Uzumaki style, but the differences were severe enough that I had a difficult time understanding it. It didn't help that the lines kept pulsing and I could see the chakra beneath her skin, barely contained. To her credit, she didn't shiver at the cold air.

"I'm sorry, Rin, you can't sleep. Not until Kushina gets here to strengthen this shitty piece of work. I know how I need to modify it, but I don't have the ink I need, hell, Kushina will have to alter her ink when she gets here to be compatible with this."

She slipped her shirt back on and turned around. "You didn't touch it. Minato-sensei always touches seals when he looks at them."

"It helps to trace lines and avoid mistakes, but not necessary."

"Can you get your weapons and bring them here? They're too far away if something happens."

I stood up and retrieved the pile, setting it down beside me, but making sure she had to get past me to reach it.

"I can't just stay awake, I have to do something."

"Do what?"

"Anything."

"Talk about yourself."

"What do you mean?" She asked suspiciously.

"Your consciousness is in direct contact with the Sanbi, who is trying to take over your body," I told her more bluntly than was strictly necessary. "You aren't used to having another being in the back of your head, especially not one about to take over. You need to either meditate and enter your mind to manually distinguish the two of you, which is a risk I don't want you to take, or talk through it."

"You say this like you've seen it happen before."

"Because I've experienced it. I know what it's like to lose part of your identity before you even realize it, you need to set the boundaries in your mind to protect yourself." I wasn't talking about the Kyuubi, I was talking about the original Kichiro and myself melding together. I became a different person and even though it grated against the back of my mind, I liked the person I had become more than the one I was before.

"You won't tell anyone, promise?"

"I'll seal my memories of everything you tell me, if you want me to."

That was all the prompting she needed before she practically poured her heart out to me. I could feel the Sanbi acting up inside of her, which I paid more attention to than what she was saying. I knew I had just made the Sanbi's shit list as whatever progress he made towards escape was countered and shoved back by reinforcing Rin's memories, personality, and very soul.

The girl impressed me more by the minute. The seal on her back was supposed to have failed at sunset, but it was almost midnight and the only thing keeping it intact was her willpower. What scared me most was if she was going to doubt herself before Kushina managed to fix the seal. Everything would crumble if she did.

(-_-)

Rin talked through the morning, but after an hour I tuned her out, instead keeping watch and only prompting her onto different topics when she faltered.

When Kushina arrived, later than I expected, I thought everything was going to be fine, unfortunately, I should have listened closer to Rin's fears. Too late, Rin saw Kushina before I did, and to my intense anger, Kakashi and Obito were tagging along. They both started to run ahead of Kushina, towards their teammate.

The Sanbi lurched within her. I screamed, Kushina backpedaled, and Kakashi and Obito kept running forward, oblivious to the danger.

I dove forward, placing myself in front of Kakashi and Obito. Bijū chakra boiled out from under her skin. She hugged herself as if it would keep the chakra in, but it was too late, not even I could have controlled the Sanbi by that point.

"I'm sorry, I'm so sorry, I love you boys," she managed before the Sanbi exploded out of her.

She was dead before she hit the ground and one of the Sanbi's tails whipped towards me. I couldn't move or it would flatten Obito and Kakashi. The tail hit me full force, flinging me backwards even as I destroyed it. I went through two trees before the third stopped me dead, flinging my head backwards and nearly snapping my spine in several places.

The distraction allowed Kushina to lock the Sanbi inside a barrier seal, with the restrained movement, Kushina's chakra chains pinned it down. Kakashi and Obito landed on either side of me, checking my bones for injury and holding me back from running towards the fighting. I was so disoriented that it didn't take much effort on their part. Kushina's hair whipped around her as she danced around the Sanbi, lines of ink streaming from her feet. It was almost like she was figure skating. The Bijū chakra ate away at Rin's body, completely consuming it by the time Kushina finished the seal, lifted her shirt, and placed a hand against her stomach, black lines snaking up her legs, around her arms. The same seal that was on the ground swirled around her navel.

It wasn't supposed to be like that.

The barrier fell and the Sanbi roared, absorbed through the chains and into the seal. I screamed.

It wasn't supposed to be like that.

I broke free of the two boys as the Bijū vanished, barely catching Kushina as she collapsed, but unable to hold her. We both sunk to the ground. I was crying.

It wasn't supposed to be like that.

"Nii-san," Kushina breathed. "Check the seal, please." I choked back the sobs and the Kyuubi chakra that covered my skin, protecting me from the Sanbi's thick chakra still hanging around Kushina like an invisible shroud, burned away the tears leaking from my eyes.

It wasn't supposed to be like that.

I did as she asked. It was flawless, even stronger than the seal holding back the Kyuubi. I put my hand over it, making sure the last of the Sanbi's chakra had been trapped. Our shrouds of chakra slowly dissipated.

It wasn't supposed to be like that.

Too late, I realized Obito's Sharingan had seen Rin's death, and it was still active, staring at the fragments of bone and ash left in the middle of the clearing. It slowly swirled into the Mangekyou.

It wasn't supposed to be like that.

Kakashi wasn't any better off, his memory was near-perfect even without the Sharingan. Not only had he seen his teammate die, he had seen me break. None of the younger generation had ever seen me lose control before.

It wasn't supposed to be like that.

Of the four of us, I was the only one injured, though Kushina was extremely exhausted from fighting and defeating a Bijū.

It wasn't supposed to be like that.

"Nii-san, why are you crying?" Kushina asked, her voice barely audible. She reached up and wiped away my tears with her singed sleeve.

It wasn't supposed to be like that.

Up until now, I had done everything I possibly could to make sure Kushina never, ever had a Bijū sealed inside of her.

It wasn't supposed to be like that.

The boys finally understood what happened to Rin. Obito fell to his knees, crying. Kakashi was stiff and unreadable as a brick wall. It would take a long, long time for anyone but Obito to get through to him again. Neither me nor Kushina were in any shape to make it back to Konoha under our own power.

Kushina sat up and wrapped her arms around my neck. "I love you, Nii-san. I'm so sorry, I love you. I never wanted to hurt you."

Everything I had done; every single damn thing was to make sure Kushina never had a Bijū sealed inside of her. I didn't walk through the village anymore because I could feel the fear, the anger, the hatred of the civilians. They were terrified of the Kyuubi, they had been ever since its monstrous form fought two other Bijū in defense of the village. They feared Jinchuuriki now. They had a taste of the power I held. They may have known Minato was far stronger, but Minato's fame was based almost entirely off shinobi accounts. His raw power was only known to the rest of the village through stories. The civilians loved him.

They had seen my power, they feared me. They had seen the Sanbi, they feared it. The fear had turned to anger, the anger gradually turned to hatred. They hated me. It went so far that Minato was forced to cut down my time at the hospital and limit my patients to shinobi and orphans who knew me as a medic rather than a Jinchuuriki. As soon as they knew what Kushina now held, they would hate her too.

Kushina's arms tightened around me. "I'm not scared anymore, Nii-san. I'm not scared. I have you with me, right? I love you, Nii-san, it's not your fault, none of this is your fault. You did everything you possibly could, it's my fault, okay? I let the boys come with me and I shouldn't have. It's my fault, don't blame yourself." She was crying now too. Her seal purified the Sanbi's chakra, refilling her reserves faster than I could have with a chakra transfusion.

She picked me up, carrying me on her back. There was no way I could have made it home under my own power. I had too many fractured bones, a severe concussion and case of whiplash.

When we arrived at the village gates two days later, I was certain Minato was about to have a cow. He was worried about me and Rin, which quickly turned to empathy and grief, he was furious with Obito and Kakashi, an anger that didn't abate when he regulated them both to D-ranks with Genin for what would probably the next year, and I couldn't tell what he thought about Kushina.

On the trip back, I healed the injuries to my bones and the worst of the bruising, but I didn't dare touch my head while I wasn't thinking straight.

Minato asked for a report from me, but after a few seconds, decided against it and had Kushina take me to the hospital for my concussion and stay with me until the medics discharged me and she thought I was fit for duty.

In the meantime, I knew he was going to continue upbraiding the two boys for disobeying my direct orders.

It would do no good, they both knew it was their fault Rin was dead. She wouldn't have panicked if they hadn't rushed her, and she definitely wouldn't have doubted herself if they hadn't been there at all.

No matter how much I reminded myself that it wasn't my fault, I had made the right calls, the problem was with other people, I couldn't shake the feeling I hadn't done enough.

Kushina answered the medic's questions for me in a low voice I couldn't quite here without concentrating, not that I felt like expending the effort.

Kushina stayed with me in the hospital, helping me change into a hospital gown.

My weapons, and Kushina's, were taken out of the room, and I heard someone pass on a message to send them home with Tamaki, who came in just before the end of his shift several hour later. It wasn't until Kushina snapped on the bright orange bracelet with three thick, black lines that I realized she had put me on suicide watch.

"I'm not suicidal," I said when Tamaki left. Kushina frowned, worried that I was bringing up the subject hours after the bracelet had been locked around my wrist.

"She was you, Nii-san." Kushina murmured softly, sitting down beside me. "Rin was what you would have been if you hadn't become a ninja in wartime. I don't care what you thought, after a month on the lines, she was good enough to go out onto the field, but you kept her in the back so she never had to fight. You pushed her harder than you pushed anyone else, expected more of her than you expected of any other medic. As much as you berated her, even she could see that you cared, that you would do anything so she didn't have to end up like you. She told me this before, she was thanking you when we got there, but like always, you weren't _listening_ to her."

"I should have listened."

"We went through your mission supplies and weapons, standard procedure, and found this in your medic pouch." She pulled out a thick journal slightly bigger than my hand, overflowing with loose papers and ink.

"That's not mine."

"It's Rin's. Kakashi recovered it from the Kiri ninja and left it in the clearing when you ordered him off. The entire thing is filled with notes and letters to you, ever since we were all on the lines against Iwa."

I flipped through it. There were only a handful of blank pages left. I read her last note to me first. At first glance, I thought it was coded, but after blinking a few times, I realized it was all in English except for my name and the date at the top of each letter. Roach had been around often enough that he could have taught her the language, but I never realized they knew each other. I had thought he was just guarding the hospital where his wife worked but Rin must have noticed him and talked to him while working.

(-_-)

 _Chiro-sensei,_

 _Everyone knew you treated me different from the others, ever since the very first day. You didn't tell me stories like you told my teammates and Kushina-sensei's students and the other kids. You only told stories when I wasn't around, like you didn't want me to hear them. I asked you once, but as usual, you weren't listening to me. I repeated the question, you glanced at me, shrugged, and said I didn't need them, then vanished._

 _At first, I thought you didn't like me, no, that you hated me. You always kept me back from the fighting, belittled my ability to fight, and made me spar at a higher level than you even pushed Natsuki and Kakashi. I hated it. I don't know how many times I ran home crying. At the end of that first month, when you had us spar against each other, I realized I'd improved more than anyone else._

 _When we were fighting Iwa, I kept up most of the training you had me doing. I saw you watching a few times, so I tried to prove I was ready to really be out in the field, but I know Minato-sensei never got the transfer request._

 _It wasn't until we went home that I realized what you had done. Kakashi must have thought me insane when I burst into tears for no apparent reason, Obito was worried sick. Whatever more you did, it made us a team, a real team, something Sensei could never quite get through to us._

 _To me, it just felt right to take care of everyone. It just felt right to visit the orphanage occasionally and heal all the maladies. It just felt right to visit and feed the lonely people who were hurting. It just felt right to visit the old people who had no one left. It just felt right to visit the ninja who couldn't be ninja again, even though they told me to move on with my life and a few threw me out. It just felt right. I know I wasn't the only one to do those things, I know that's where you vanish to, even though it annoys everyone. I've seen you a few times. I don't know why you do it, but I support you. I think you're slowly changing the entire world. I think you can fix what's wrong with this world, without even trying. You have influence, more influence than most people in the village, except maybe Sandaime-sama and Minato-sensei._

 _I used to be a little brat that didn't care about anyone or anything. When I was still in civilian school, you changed that. You came to pick up your family members, and there were these three orphans nobody liked. They smelled funny, they weren't as smart, they always begged for food, and they were absent as much as they were present. You stopped and played with them while you waited for the rest of your family. You made them happy, and I wanted to make people that happy._

 _I failed, but you didn't. There's something about you that's just different. I never want you to lose that, because if you lose it—_

 _I talked to Sakumo-sensei once and some other people who knew you when you were my age. I think I know why you did everything you did. You were just like I am as a kid, weren't you? Well, you were just like me, but a lot better. You were a brilliant medic, but you hated fighting, you never, ever dealt the finishing blow on purpose. Like me, you weren't meant to be a ninja but you became one anyways, and I don't want to ask you why._

 _You believe in me, I know you do, you always have. You believe I can keep the Sanbi back, but I know it's only a matter of time. If someone startles me, I'm going to lose control, but I think you know that, it's why you told Obito and Kakashi to stay in Konoha._

 _I'm scared they won't. They don't stand a chance against the Sanbi, and I know I can't protect them from it, you or Kushina-sensei will get hurt protecting them. I know I have to, but I know if they show up, I won't be able to. I'm scared, Chiro-sensei. I don't want to die, I'm scared of what's next, terrified. It's so cold out here, just thinking about it makes me colder._

 _I'm so sorry about what I said earlier. I know I hurt you worse than anyone else could have. I'm sorry. I know you never, ever hurt anyone because you want to. You only hurt people if they threaten or hurt the people you care about. I know you don't think it's a good thing, but I do. I also know it won't change the fact that I hurt you, I hurt you more than anyone else could and I regret that more than anything else._

 _Please don't tell my family what happened, just tell them I'm dead, please don't tell them anything more. I don't want them to know._

 _Finally, thank you, Chiro-sensei. Thank you for everything you did for me, everything you said, and everything you live for. I know you owe me nothing, absolutely nothing, I know I failed you in every possible way, but if you have a little bit of good will left for me, please don't join me in whatever's next, at least not until you're old, grey, crippled, and the last living person I know._

 _Thank you, Chiro-sensei, thank you for everything,_

 _Nohara Rin_

* * *

 _Author's note: S_ _everal of you expressed doubt that Rin actually wrote the letter to Kichiro. That's not what I intended, but your theory works just as well as what I actually had in mind. Nagato definitely has the skill to forge a letter like that and Kushina would deliver it if it had the smallest chance of helping her brother. What I intended was this: Rin did write the letter, but Kichiro just let her words flow in one ear and out the other. He did so was partially because he was focused on the Sanbi and preventing its escape and partially because he didn't want to violate her privacy. He did swear to seal his memories of what she talked about. After all, he knew Rin pretty well, and cared for all of his various students, especially her, but he didn't think she saw him as anything more than a demanding former sensei. She wrote the letter while they were waiting and Kichiro was more focused on the fact that there was an improperly-restrained biju who no doubt had a grudge against him, perhaps even a compulsion to attack Konoha, than whatever was going through a teenage girl's head._

 _Like always, everyone is free to come up with their own interpretations of what happens behind the scenes of Kichiro's narration. I love to hear the different theories and thoughts._

 _Another note: Apparently people actually read these notes. Who knew?_

 _Happy news: I finally own the first fifteen volumes of the original Naruto manga. My goal is to eventually own and (legally) read them all. :) I feel very blessed, even amidst the stress._

 _Other news: I have a confession to make. Way back near the beginning of September, I mentioned that I was starting something and would see how it went. That something kinda exploded into a now-200-page monstrosity. (which is about 20 chapters' worth of SOTT) Anyway, I think you deserve some details now that it's been two months. (I almost put down one month. This is the third time I've completely forgotten the existence of October since August.) It has a similar cast of characters as SOTT, but different plot/themes/genre/everything else. (it's NOT a tragedy or anywhere near as angsty as this) Basically, it answers the questions:_ _What if the Sandaime adopted Kichiro and Kushina into his home when they came to Konoha instead of leaving them to fend for themselves? What if Kichiro chose to become the Kyuubi Jinchuuriki of his own free will instead of only protecting his sister from the fate? Of course, as with everything Kichiro touches, it goes fubar. I've already got the entire plot sketched out and it doesn't look anything like SOTT. I'm considering posting the first chapter in the sidestory to see what the response is, but I need something a little more interesting than what I have already. It's so much fun and so incredibly distracting from my schoolwork because of many reasons._

 _Finally: There are three chapters left before the original ending of SOTT. Just giving y'all a heads up. I'll mark this as complete until I return in May with the rest. Further information on this will come later._

 ** _Don't forget to leave a review!_**


	81. Chapter 81

Kushina didn't read the letter over my shoulder, not that she would understand it anyways, but I suspected she could figure out what is said.

"No one else really thanks you, do they?" Kushina asked when I finished, closing and taking the journal from me.

I shook my head and she stood up to lay me down on the bed.

"Please get some real sleep, I'm not going anywhere, Nii-san, I swear."

I just stared up at the ceiling, thinking. I wasn't tired.

After some time of Kushina dozed off with her head on my stomach. The door opened quietly, and she woke immediately, murmured something to the nurse, who inserted an IV with a sedative, just enough to knock me out.

(-_-)

The next day, I was back on duty. A little emptier, much quieter, but working nonetheless. Kushina's new status as a Jinchuuriki was known only to me, Minato, Kakashi, and Obito.

The official story was that Rin died as a captive of Kiri, Obito and Kakashi avenged her death, and I was nearby when it happened and got caught by an explosive tag while I cleaned everything else up. Kushina left the village on a short trip to fetch a present for me, and ran into us on her way back

Everything was neatly covered up.

After the buzz died down and the funeral was several days past, I asked my father and Kushina to meet me at Minato and Kushina's apartment during the first free hour I had. When they arrived, I showed them the book. My father pressed his fist to his mouth and sat down on the sofa. After a moment, his head fell into his hands.

"I went back to Uzu," I said quietly. "I found this in our old house. Nothing else was intact except baby clothes."

"We had a house?" Kushina asked, taking the book.

"Yeah, the clan sealed it for us until we were old enough to live on our own, but it was destroyed in the massacre."

Kushina opened it. "You must be mistaken, Kichiro, these are of you—"

"No, that's To-chan. I look just like he used too. Still do, actually."

I sat down on my father's other side. "Who is that little girl?" Kushina asked at the one of my father teaching a girl how to sew.

"Her name was Kokoro," To-chan responded with a faint smile. "Your grandparents operated the orphanage while I was growing up—the same orphanage the two of you lived in. She came in shortly after Ise with an infant sibling—always underfoot and causing trouble trying to care for the baby so I took her along with me to do chores and give your grandparents a break. Your mother always said that she fell in love with me that day while she watched me teach Kokoro to mend. I think I was thirteen. That's why it is the first image in the book. She always said this was supposed to tell our story, our whole story." He turned the page. "That's me and Ise. He lived at the orphanage for a year before apprenticing to one of the civilian doctors. Even after his apprenticeship began and I made Genin, we were practically inseparable until—" he broke off and I knew he was referring to what happened in Kiri.

Kushina decided not to push for information and turned the page. "What seal is this?"

My father studied it for a moment. "It's the set of seals I got my fūinjutsu mastery in—your mother drew it during my mastery assessment, actually. They were healing seals. Useless to anyone but a fūinjutsu master and their immediate family, but I impressed the elders with them. I could heal injuries up to level four on myself and my parents. They'll work on you two as well. I started working on those when I was eight. Eventually, when I was fourteen, I got the idea to use blood sealing. It worked, but I nearly infected a group of Konoha Genin with seal sickness by accident. Luckily, Ise recognized the signs and no one got hurt, although he ended up getting sick too. I got my mastery a week after I recovered. Those healing seals saved my life hundreds of times. Your mother tried to get everyone to start calling me 'Ryuu the Fanatic' because I wouldn't shut up about them. Luckily, it didn't catch on. The next one is the move I used to win my first fight at the Chuunin exams, the third set of international exams ever held. I was fifteen. Those exams—let's just say they were interesting." He smiled.

"What happened?" Kushina pressed. My father was happy to comply. It wasn't often we heard about his life before we were born.

"I was the only Uzumaki competing but it was simply diplomacy and had no bearing on my promotion in Uzu. My first fight was normal, against a Kumo guy who never amounted to much. He broke my femur and I used that jutsu to buy time and use a healing seal. Turned out I didn't need to bother with the seal. He tried to block it with an earth defense, and it didn't turn out well for him. My second match was against a Hyuuga. I used up all my smoke bombs before I realized they were useless against the Byakugan. I was reaching for seals to use when the Hyuuga tore my seal pouch off my leg and scattered the seals all over the arena. If he had known what I had in that pouch, he never would have touched it, but the end result was that the organization of all my seals was messed up. That set the stage for everything else that happened. Kushina, you probably know that it's difficult to tell the difference between a prank flashbang and a real one. I panicked and didn't check which one I grabbed off the ground. I accidentally grabbed one with a foul, eyewatering gas in it and threw it so I could come up with a new plan. Luckily, the judges thought it was just a gamble on my part rather than desperation because the Hyuuga forfeited immediately afterward, something about the gas burning their eyes. They were just being a wuss."

"What about your last match?" Kushina asked with a wide grin.

"I actually had three more matches—at the time, the Chuunin exams were only a tournament, nothing more. Anyway, I gathered up all my seals, and did my best to organize them. Unfortunately, I didn't have time to separate the prank seals from the normal ones. My next match was a mess and the effects of the seals surprised me just as much as my opponent. Eventually, I gave up on the seals and defeated the Suna kid in taijutsu. The next match, I was prepared for the craziness of my disorganized seals and the Kiri ninja couldn't handle it—probably thought I was a bit mad. The last match, however—after a scolding from my sensei—I took it seriously. Unfortunately, my seals were still disorganized. It was an honest mistake, but I accidentally stole the clothes of an Inuzuka—Jiro, I think his name was. I ran into him a few times afterwards and he was hilarious to tease, but my sensei took the prank out of my hide, even though it was honestly an accident. I didn't make Chuunin until a few months later."

Kushina snickered when she reached the one of him sleeping.

"Ka-chan drew this?"

"Yeah, I was sixteen and just made Jōnin. Your mother wanted to take me down a peg, so she drugged me and stole my clothes—incidentally with the same seal that got me into trouble during the Chuunin Exams."

Kushina snickered. "I did the same thing to Minato when he made Jōnin. Except I got a full, frontal picture. In color too!"

"I did not need to know that," I gagged.

My father chuckled and patted my back in consolation. "Your mother and I used to use that seal to—"

"I don't want to know!" I clamped my hands over my ears. I was convinced that my father and Kushina got some kind of sick pleasure out of making me extremely uncomfortable when it came to Minato and Kushina's relationship. On good days, my father even shared details about himself and my mother, which was infinitely worse, although Kushina, as a married woman, enjoyed it immensely.

Kushina turned the page and gasped.

"Is that Ka-chan?"

We nodded and my father's eyes glistened with tears. He pulled Kushina into a hug and then me. "I think—"

Kushina turned the page. After a moment, she looked at me. I realized that no one had told her that our father had been a prisoner of Kiri.

She looked at me. "This isn't you."

My father tried to stand up, but I grabbed his shirt and made him sit down. "You should tell her."

"You know?" He asked me.

I nodded. "Ise told me after I came back from Iwa. It helped more than anything else."

He looked down at his hands, his fists clenched. "The first time they brought you in, I thought I was in a genjutsu, that they were going to have my younger self try and pry information from me, then they started interrogating you. I could see the birthmark on your back and the scar behind your ear from when you fell off the chair while we were in the hospital waiting for Kushina's birth. You only ever gave them one statement. 'Uzumaki Kichiro of Uzushiogakure, number six-seven-nine-four-eight.' I still remembered your Uzu citizenship code, I knew it was you. As soon as they gave you a chance to look at me, I signed to you, Uzu's signs, desperately hoping that they had lied to me about Uzu's destruction. I laughed when you acknowledged the signs, I laughed so hard that the Iwa nin, the scariest man I'd ever met, looked slightly terrified. Your signs were so practiced, natural, as if you'd been using them your whole life. I went insane for a while, screaming and calling Iwa liars, shouting that the clan was alive and well, that it was only a matter of time before Uzu and, by extension, Konoha, found out I was there and crushed them."

Kushina was pale and my father was staring at his hands, not quite able to distinguish memory from the present. He didn't even twitch when I stood up and took a knee in front of Kushina to make sure she was alright. Her head fell onto my shoulder.

"They—kami, I got my own son killed—"

I could feel him slipping, faster than ever, Kushina almost pitched to the floor as I jerked away from her, grabbed his hands and held them to my face, adding a very faint genjutsu so he knew exactly who I was. I also put my knee across his lap, holding him in place. "To-chan, To-chan, I'm right here, I'm fine." I knew exactly what he was talking about, they had broken my left collarbone and left a massive gash from my left temple to my chin. Now, the scar was barely noticeable, just a thin white line. It couldn't be felt. I'd never seen him slip this far—it was terrifying.

His hands tightened around my face, tracing the scar. "Kichiro—Kichiro, you're alive! Where—what happened—how—"

"To-chan—"

"Kushina! Kami, you're all grown up—you're both grown up! Where are we? What happened?"

Kushina burst into tears, the book falling from her hands. I grabbed it and stuffed it in my pocket.

"Where's you're your mother? Where's Midori?"

"To-chan, she's dead, she died before I was three."

He tried to pull his hands away, but I held on.

"Where are we? What's going on?" He demanded, almost hysterical. Kushina grabbed his arm and held on tight.

"We're in Konoha, in Kushina's home. She's married now."

"I wasn't there—"

"You were there, To-chan. You were there, Ise was there too. Do you remember Ise? He has a son—he has lots of kids, you like playing with them, you teach them to be shinobi."

"But you said we're in Konoha—why are we in Konoha?"

"Uzu was destroyed, it was destroyed almost twenty years ago."

"They tortured you—kami they tortured you—Konoha and Iwa—"

"I'm fine now, To-chan. I have you here. To-chan—" He stood up and started to march towards the door. I barely managed to hug him from behind, pinning his arms to his side before he left the room. Kushina planted herself in front of him and leaned against his chest.

"Kushina? Why are you crying?" He wrapped his arms around her and I cautiously let go. "Kichiro? Kami, it happened again, I'm so sorry!" He pulled me into the hug. I was so exhausted. I didn't care that we were in the middle of Minato's floor, I slumped against them. Shortly after Kushina stopped crying, I was asleep. I woke briefly when she stood up, then again when my father lifted my shirt and brushed his fingers over the Kyuubi's seal on my abdomen, talking to Kushina about it with murmurs I didn't understand. I didn't bother to fully wake up until Minato came looking for me after I didn't show up for the ANBU meeting.

(-_-)

Several weeks later, Kushina showed up for the newly-instated ANBU physical exam.

"Do you have any current injuries?" I asked dully. She was my sixth patient of the day.

"Of course not," Kushina responded.

"Do you have any pain or difficulty associated with movement?"

"Nope."

"Any abnormal fatigue, loss of memory, or delayed reactions?"

"Just a bit tired lately, so I've been cutting back on missions."

"Good to know. Have you had any decline in sensory perception?"

"Nope! Just diagnostics and I'm free to go, I know the drill."

I put a hand over her sternum, barely hiding my surprise at the completely unexpected, even though it shouldn't have been, results.

"Congrats, you've just been removed from duty for the indeterminate future."

Kushina's indignant shriek could be heard across half the village.

"That's was a mean way to tell me and you should have taken yourself off duty six weeks ago, now get out." I turned my back and she stormed out.

My day went downhill from there. Three ANBU teams arrived half-dead and carrying their dead at almost the exact same time, two ANBU had a massive argument that managed to get the entire cafeteria involved, and then I realized I had forgotten to hand out mission assignments for the day.

When I made it home that evening, barely in time for dinner, I got the cold shoulder from everyone except my father, which was extremely odd, especially since the entire family hadn't eaten together since before Minato was appointed Hokage. Even Nagato was barely civil with me. Normally, I wouldn't have said anything, but I was more than a little irritable. The kids ate and vacated the room as soon as possible.

"Alright, what did I do this time?" I exploded, standing up sharply as soon as the last one scurried out.

"Why the hell would you kick me off duty for no reason?" Kushina snapped, shooting to her feet.

"Why the hell would you try and stay on duty? Are you trying to kill yourself?"

"I was just a little tired, that's all! No reason to kick me off!"

"Are you a blithering idiot? Reducing missions doesn't cut it!"

"It's the logical answer! Why the hell are you acting like I did something unspeakable?"

"Because you're being a selfish brat!"

"For once I'm taking care of myself!"

"You call this taking care of yourself?"

"What the hell is wrong then?"

"There's nothing _wrong_ —"

She tried to lunge forward but Minato and Nagato caught her at the last second. My father grabbed my arms and started to pull me backwards, out of the room, a faint smirk on his face.

"Is everyone here blind as well as insane?" I yanked myself free and gestured sharply towards Kushina, heedless of the way it looked like I was throwing something at her and everyone flinched back. Before I could bite it back, a sharp stream of English expletives exploded from my mouth. "She's twelve weeks pregnant for Kami's sake!" I finally managed so everyone could understand.

The entire room was struck dumb.

"How?" Kushina asked me. Minato looked just as confused.

"Are you kidding me?" I snapped.

"How can I possibly be pregnant?"

"Obviously you've gotten hit on the head recently. There are five other doctors in this room and eleven people here with children, I am _not_ going to be the one to explain this to them again."

"Again? But that means—oh!" Both Minato and Kushina understood at the same moment and flushed red a second later as they picked up exactly what I was insinuating and the extra information the rest of the room really didn't want or need to know.

Nervous and uncomfortable laughs rang around the room. My father, the only person who wasn't actually worked up about the situation, only smiled even wider. He no doubt already knew and just let everything play out. He just seemed to have a sixth sense for everything that happened around me and Kushina.

"I still don't get it," Natsuki piped up. She was just barely close enough for me to lightly smack the back of her head.

"Think back to what you were told about the birds and the bees," I told her before tuning on my heel and marching out.

She went as red as her hair as the congratulations started and everyone huddled around Kushina.

Natsuki followed me out of the room and upstairs. "What do you want?" I asked as I flopped down on one of the mattresses and closed my eyes. The room had changed a lot and not at all. Aside from the bathroom in the corner, there were no rooms, only mattresses strewn about the floor, a handful of them pushed together. By the window, there was a mess of pre-packed mission bags and throughout the room there were kunai, uniforms, senbon, and other miscellaneous shinobi supplies. The uniforms were different and more numerous, the weapons quite a bit deadlier, but otherwise the room was remarkably similar to the room from years ago.

"Bad day?"

"What do you want?" I repeated.

"I want to join ANBU."

"You need a sponsor."

"Who do I ask?"

"An active agent."

"You could sponsor me."

"I could, but I'm not going to."

"Nagato would."

"Then go ask him."

"Kushina would."

"In case you missed the entire shit storm, she's not an active agent anymore."

"Kagami-sama—"

"Is retired."

"Sakumo-sensei—"

"Also, officially retired. Only shows up to give me trouble or when Kakashi is out of the village and he doesn't know what to do with himself."

"You could."

I cracked open an eye and looked her up and down. "With a bit more training, you might be able to make the cut. I still won't sponsor you. Politics and all that." I closed my eye.

"Ass."

"Ask your brother."

She was not amused. Providing an ANBU sponsorship was probably the only thing Nagato wouldn't do for his little sisters, especially Natsuki. "Naomi's technically in ANBU."

"Just because someone's sensei is in ANBU doesn't land the student there as well. Naomi doesn't have a mask; therefore, she isn't ANBU."

"Do you not want me in ANBU?"

"No, I just don't want half the Uzumaki shinobi legacy to be ANBU."

"I was trained with ANBU techniques, so were you, Nagato, and Naomi!"

"You still haven't finished your retraining with my father."

"Come on, you know that's just redundant."

"I don't care. The Uzumaki training is uniquely suited to our chakra and personalities."

"You're just being mean."

"Do you think it's too hard?"

"You and Kushina aren't going through the retraining!"

"That's because Kushina and I are too old for it. Nagato is too old as well. You aren't."

"Bullshit."

"Better clean up your language before your brother comes looking for you."

"Which one?"

"I'm sure your mother would love for you to teach your little brothers some new swearwords."

"You swear in front of them all the time."

"I'm an adult, I can do what I want."

"Damn, you're really pissed right now. I'm going to go tell Kushina she needs to suck up to you fast."

"Don't bother, she's headed up the stairs now, with Minato."

"It's weird to think of him as Hokage. He's no different now, maybe more reserved." I could feel Minato and Kushina eavesdropping.

"He's not any different, you know. He's still the same person, he just can't play favorites in public anymore."

"I know that, but still."

"What do you mean?"

"I miss him. Ever since he made Hokage, he only comes around when you're here."

She flopped down across my stomach.

"Why do you think? He could just flash here and no one would know."

"Kids talk, Natsuki-chan, we can't tell them not to talk about him. They'll get themselves a target on their backs if they start talking about seeing Minato too often.

I barely dodged the worst of her retaliatory elbow, but my thigh took the brunt of it. "Don't call me 'chan'."

"Make me."

She twisted to try and pin me, but I reversed the hold faster than she could blink, flopping over her and rubbing her face in my armpit as she squeaked out protests. Minato chose then to enter, chuckling, and sat down. I let go of Natsuki, and flopped back down on the bed, fending off her retaliation.

"You still sleep here," she threatened when I continued to hold her off with one hand.

"Unlike you, I have another place to sleep and three times your skill."

Kushina cautiously entered a few seconds later, sitting beside Minato. At least until I tossed Natsuki at them. She kicked off Minato's chest and launched herself back at me, or would have, if I hadn't snuck a sticking seal on her foot, causing her to face-plant into the bed when her foot stuck to Minato.

I laughed at her.

"You got a long way to go, kiddo," I told her.

"I'll show you!" She threatened as Minato released the seal attaching her to his vest and she launched herself towards me, rolling me off the bed.

"Does wittle Mina-chan want to get involved too?" I taunted. It didn't take much to set him off.

It was very, very hard for Natsuki to pretend she wasn't ticklish after that. Kushina didn't join in, which surprised me, even when Nagato and the rest of his sisters came up to investigate and join the ruckus. Six against one was extremely unfair, even though two were Genin and two were Chuunin. I put up a decent fight, considering Minato and I were the only ones not ticklish. Tickling was certainly a shinobi skill. If it wasn't, it should be.

Kushina was the only person who knew where Minato was ticklish, and I knew she wasn't going to share. Unfortunately, my father came up to investigate the ruckus as well and volunteered information not even I knew, to my extreme detriment and humiliation.

"His lower back is extremely ticklish," my father said. "He used to giggle uncontrollably, and it was the only way I could change his diaper without him throwing a fit."

I barely freed myself before they tested whether or not that particular tidbit was still valid. If I could have, I would have used my father as a meat shield, however, his health was still poor. He had been a prisoner for eighteen years, tortured in every possible way for information on me, Konoha, and his clan almost every day. It was a miracle he survived, much less with his mind mostly intact. The best the rest of us could hope for was the scars to fade. He didn't adjust to civilian life, so to keep busy, he trained the next generation of Uzu shinobi whenever he wasn't bedridden.

His skill as a shinobi hadn't diminished, even if his strength and speed was that of an experienced Genin. A burst of adrenaline made him a danger to even the most experienced shinobi. He nearly killed me twice when I forgot to announce myself when I came to check on him. It helped to have Kushina and I around, but we both had too many responsibilities to help as much as we wanted.

I ducked and dodged Minato's Hiraishin and the many and varied grabs of Nagato and his siblings. I kept a close eye on my father through it all, making sure he didn't relapse in the excitement. Unfortunately, the match escalated too quickly. I barely caught one of the signs my father was going to fall into a flashback. Naomi tried to use my father's shadow to sneak up on me, but my father nearly slashed her throat in alarm. I caught the blade on the back of my wrist, but in my haste, it didn't hit the metal plate, it went through the gap between my glove and my sleeve, biting deep into the muscle. The smell of blood made everything worse.

Nagato and Minato got the younger shinobi out of his attack range by the time he took advantage of my distraction and slammed me to the ground. His hands closed around my neck, nearly cutting off my blood supply as well as my air. I didn't fight him. I could have, but it would only continue to play out the flashback. If I didn't resist, he would come back to himself much faster. I let my hands fall to either side of my head. It was extremely dangerous for me to do, he could have snapped my neck in a heartbeat. Fortunately, while he was held prisoner, Iwa tried to use me against him, giving him pictures of me. While I was held captive, they used me against him.

It took nearly a minute for him to recognize me and loosen his grip as the flashback faded.

"Not again," he murmured as I gasped for breath underneath him.

He rolled off me and started to leave. "To-chan, no!" I rasped after him, struggling to my feet as my body protested. He stopped, torn between taking away the risk to me and fixing the damage. "It's okay, To-chan, everything's okay, please, don't leave."

He looked over at the side of the room where Kushina was shielding everyone else, a hand over her belly.

"He won't let anyone else take care of him," she said, barely audible.

"Please, To-chan, don't go!" It was more for his sake than anyone else's and we weren't even trying to hide the emotional manipulation. Blood rushed to my head and I swayed dangerously where I stood. I would have fallen, medic or not, if he hadn't caught me. I tried to sit up, but he had already applied a paralysis seal and was applying seals all over my body. I forced myself to stay calm, even though I really wanted to burn the seals off. I _hated_ it when other people put seals on me. After a few seconds, I felt his chakra start to course through me, healing the daily bumps and bruises I hadn't bothered with, as well as the cut on my wrist.

"Those seals are too complicated, I don't know what they do," Kushina murmured.

My father took the paralysis seal off, but before he could pull away, I sat up and hugged him.

Kushina knelt and pulled us both into a hug. After a long moment, my father reciprocated. When I was sure he wasn't going to try and leave, I loosened my grip and leaned against them. A few seconds later, Kushina started prodding my father to teach her the seal he put on me.

I didn't listen to the explanation, it was too far beyond my comprehension. Everyone else respectfully shuffled out of the room.

* * *

 _Author's note: Honestly, I've given enough hints and warnings that you could probably figure out what's going to happen next. Don't spoil it for those who don't want to know. Let them enjoy the family time in this chapter. I have to admit that I did intentionally delay posting this until my Thanksgiving break actually started._

 _Thank you so much for the thirty-three reviews last chapter. That's by far a record number for two weeks' time. You guys are amazing and I'm really starting to feel guilty for what happens next._

 _I hope everyone has a peaceful Thanksgiving. I'm thankful for all of my readers who brought more than ten times the attention to this story than I ever expected._


	82. Chapter 82

On the first day of October, I was wound tighter than a drum.

On the second day, I made Minato go over all the contingencies until he kicked me out of his office.

On the third day, Minato made me cover for him while he personally prepared the house outside the village that Kushina would give birth in.

On the fourth day, Kushina and my father managed to distract me for most of the day.

On the fifth day, Minato tried to trick me into telling him why I was so inexplicably on-edge. It didn't work.

On the sixth day, Nagato sedated me when the stress, tension, and fear gave me an irregular heartbeat. How he knew about the heartbeat when I didn't allow anyone to touch me as soon as I noticed the problem, I had no idea and chalked it up as some of the scary-ass shit he could do with his eyes. I spent the rest of the day and night asleep, oblivious to a seal attached to the bed that would set off an alarm if I tried to move too much.

On the seventh day, I regained my focus and composure.

On the eighth day, I verified contingencies and arranged for the entire clan to be under the best protection in case someone tried to target them.

On the ninth day, I spent the entire day meditating, alone, trying to find, or at least draw the attention of whomever I knew was going to attack Kushina.

On the tenth day, I stayed with Kushina until she went into labor that evening.

We were lucky Minato's apartment was soundproofed or she would have panicked the entire village that evening. Minato flashed in after a few seconds, then took the two of us to the safe house. He flashed away and returned with Biwako as a heavy feeling descended on my chest. I knew things were going to go horribly wrong, but I sat down beside Kushina and closed my eyes, drawing on the Kyuubi's chakra to quadruple my sensing range and blocking out the sounds from the birthing process behind me.

Three hours later, the cry of an infant broke through my concentration, but not enough for me to miss the chakra signature streaking towards us. I barely managed to intercept the assailant before he could engage Minato. It was a man in an orange swirled mask, but it wasn't Madara. By the time I killed the first assailant, two more streaked in behind me, one snatching Naruto away as Biwako handed the baby to Minato. The second tried to stab Biwako in the back, but I dove in between, the blade impaling my chest. There was a reason they went for Biwako and not me. She swung around me and broke the assailant's neck before he could pull the blade free. She didn't even look at who she killed.

In one fluid motion, she went from killing a man to lowering me to the ground and beginning the healing process. She didn't even pause.

"Naruto!" Minato cried out.

I helped heal, but dumb luck had the injury disrupting my ability to mold chakra, so the only thing I could work on was fixing my chakra pathways.

"Don't move or the child dies at the ripe old age of one minute!" The third assailant snarled. Minato froze and two more orange-masked hostiles. Everyone froze. "Medic-chan, step away from the Jinchuuriki."

Biwako hesitated, glancing at Minato.

"Do as he says," Minato murmured.

I gritted my teeth when the healing stopped. She hadn't dulled the nerves at all, an oversight that left me nearly incapacitated.

The two newcomers slapped me with ineffective chakra-binding seals and grabbed me under my armpits.

"Don't follow," I hissed. "They're trying to—" They shunshined away before I could finish.

The shunshin lasted far longer than it should have, and the two hostiles dropped me on my face at the end of it. I started to struggle to my feet, holding my wound, but when blood practically gushed between my fingers, I thought better of it and collapsed. It would probably be better if my captors thought I was worse off than I actually was.

"I wanted him unharmed!" A very familiar voice snapped.

"He killed one of us already, we had to incapacitate him."

"Ten years of training and you can't take care of four distracted people?" Madara snapped. He did not sound anywhere near as old as he should have been. I discreetly deactivated two of the chakra tags with a smear of blood and began working on healing myself, curling around my stomach so they couldn't see my hand glowing. Madara continued to upbraid his minions. As soon as I could mold chakra well enough I pulled a seal out of my kunai pouch. Before I could activate it and Hiraishin out of the immediate vicinity, one of the minions tried to snatch it away. They only managed to tear off a corner of the tag, but it disrupted the seal anyways.

I growled at the minion and they backed off, even if the sound was wet and weak.

"Kichiro-san." Madara greeted amicably.

I had no choice but to force myself to stand, just so I could see him and spit in his face, which I did. He didn't look much older than the Sandaime, but his chakra had definitely faded with age.

He calmly wiped the spit away while his minions protested but were too scared to get near me. "And what, pray tell, was that for?"

"You didn't listen to a word I said fourteen years ago."

"Fourteen years is a long time, even by my standards."

"Damn you. I'm leaving." I turned on my heel and started to leave.

"Go ahead and try to find a way out."

I suddenly wished I'd bothered to pick up laying seals without ink and supplies. I could do the Hiraishin. It was clumsy and my range was only a few hundred yards. I knew the theory behind the Rasengan, which would have been extremely useful in busting myself straight up, but I hadn't actually managed it, to my frustration. I sincerely hoped the cavern we were in wasn't more than a mile underground. Judging by the freshness of the air, it was probably only a few hundred feet.

Madara didn't figure out my solution until it was too late. I stamped my foot on the ground and destabilized the entire tunnel system within three hundred yards in every direction, my hand on my stomach to loosen the seal. I used the Kyuubi's chakra as a cloak to protect myself from the falling debris and speed up my healing by a lot.

I only stuck around long enough to confirm Madara's chakra was gone. A pulse of the Kyuubi's chakra pointed me towards the nearest town. I ran towards it until I heard a massive roar coming from my left. I leapt up into the treetops and only needed one glance. The Sanbi had been freed and was ravaging the village.

A bright flash nearby, the origin of which I had no clue, jolted me out of my horrified trance and spurred me towards the village as fast as I possibly could. I made it to the southern ANBU entrance, only to find the Sanbi sitting in the middle of the village. It released a guttural roar, ensnaring most of the shinobi trying to stall the creature in a widespread Genjutsu. It was much, much bigger than the two times I faced it, as big as the Kyuubi would have been had I dared transform. With an equally powerful burst of chakra, I dispelled the Genjutsu.

A massive flash of light illuminated the Hokage monument, drawing the Sanbi's attention. It spun around faster than a creature that size should have been able to. I crouched, about to leap forward when the Sanbi raised its tails, then began to slam them down. One tail dropped straight towards the hospital. I leapt forward, preparing my strongest jutsu that would blow the Sanbi's entire tail off. The second tail would only hit the main road, minimal loss of life, but the third tail swung far wider than it should, and as I leapt onto one of the taller buildings, I saw exactly where it would fall.

The house glowed with defensive seals, but they had already taken more damage than they could handle and were faltering. The Kyuubi's extra sensing told me that everyone, my entire family except Minato, Kushina, and Naruto, were inside the house, struggling to repair the damages. If the Sanbi's tail fell, not even the children hidden in the basement would survive. I hated myself for it, but I would make the same decision every time. Even though the hospital had more people at risk, I raced past. The hospital was flattened, my family was not, even though it left me lying on the roof, barely alive. The Sanbi was completely missing a tail and turned his attention towards me. As his eyes fell on me, I was barely able to stay conscious. My father landed beside me and began a chakra transfusion. While the Sanbi was distracted with me, Minato transported it outside the village.

I knew what he was planning. Even without my unique knowledge I would have known. Minato didn't have the skill to properly seal the Sanbi because he never studied Jinchuuriki seals, there was no reason for him to. Between childbirth and having the Sanbi extracted, having the Bijū re-sealed would kill Kushina, if she even had the strength for it.

"Kichiro, don't—" my father tried to stop me, but I had already taken off running. I didn't know how, but I had to stop him.

I landed just as Kushina's hand, the one not filled with an infant Naruto, hit the ground. A barrier sprung up, a barrier made to specifically keep me out. Kushina's hair had been raggedly cut, as if it had been caught in something and she had sliced it with a kunai to free herself. Minato landed beside her a second later. Minato had a katana in his hand, my katana, I had no idea where or how he got it. The only time I had seen him resort to a blade was when I had pushed him so far in a spar he had no chakra left. He was as good as I was with it, if not better, but it was his absolute last resort. I didn't even want to know what Minato had faced. He had been severely outclassed.

For the briefest of moments, they met my eyes, holding each other, Naruto sleeping peacefully in the crook of Kushina's arm, despite the chaos around him and the roaring Sanbi in the background.

Whatever happened while I was gone was far worse than anything I ever imagined for it to leave Minato in that state. I didn't have any idea what or how it happened. I slammed my fists against the barrier, screaming for them to stop, for them to find another way, but there was no way they would have been able to hear me. I couldn't even hear myself over the Sanbi's roars.

Naruto was wrapped in my haori, which my father had sewn seals into that would turn away the worst of flying debris when they were active. The seals glowed with Kushina's chakra. They stood there for a seemingly endless moment, just looking back at me sadly. Minato's left sleeve had been completely incinerated, leaving a nasty burn behind. Kushina wore a plain, sleeveless, grey robe, but it barely covered her. She had been fighting, blood soaked her sleeve and arm holding Naruto. The infant had a scratch from the corner of his nose to his earlobe. Minato had a kunai still thrust through his calf and I had no idea how he was still standing.

I could have handled their injuries, their exhaustion, their sadness. I couldn't handle their silent apology to me; I couldn't handle their utter terror. They knew they were going to die. They knew that whatever seal they were planning would kill them and they were utterly terrified of it. It had been so long since I had last seen them scared. The last time I had seen them so terrified was in the aftermath of their kidnapping by Suna. Seeing their expressions again brought forth the image of their traumatized eight-year-old selves, huddled in the middle of Minato's old, dingy apartment.

Tears blurred my vision and made ugly streaks down my face. After another second and the moment was broken. Minato made a hand seal and a crib-sized stone table rose from the ground.

I pounded on the barrier, screaming fruitlessly. "Don't, please, don't do this, you can't!"

Kushina laid Naruto on top of the sealing altar. The Sanbi started to charge towards them, but Kushina's chakra chains sprang from the ground and pinned the Bijū. They were a quarter of the size I had last seen them and could barely restrain the Bijū.

I bombarded the barrier with as many jutsu as I could, but they were weak and barely would have posed a threat to a Genin. Several people landed behind me, but I ignored them, violently assaulting the barrier with my fists and feet.

Few people could appreciate the skill and teamwork required to jointly perform a seal, especially the one they were attempting. It was based off one of my inventions from before I became a Genin, which I thought I had thrown away when I realized it wasn't strong enough to hold anything more than the Rokubi.

In joint sealing, the results were well worth the effort. The seal would do exactly what it was intended, and it would take a similar joint sealing effort to break it. It would be a long time, if ever, before another duo would be able to match them. Not even me and Nagato, at the height of our fūinjutsu skill, could have done anything like it. They knelt on either side of Naruto and held out their hands to make hand seals like a macabre clapping game. I could see their chakra flowing out through their hands and forming the seal on Naruto. Minato succumbed when the seals finished, chakra drawing the last scraps of energy from his body. Kushina still held his dead hands on the last seal.

The Sanbi found himself rapidly absorbed into Kushina's chains for the second time. I could see his chakra travelling through the chains, through her, and into Naruto. The infant awoke with a scream as the Bijū chakra poured into the seal. Once the Sanbi was completely inside of Naruto, Kushina forced Minato's dead hands into the final seal. The moment she completed it, she stood, her legs shaking, and dragged herself around the stone table to kneel beside Minato. She closed his eyes and kissed his forehead, murmuring something I was too far away to hear. The barrier fell and I dashed forward, but before I could take more than a few steps, Kushina's hands came together in one final seal, a cross, and Minato's body burned to ashes. I watched as she died as well and the jutsu cremated her, leaving nothing but a smear of ash.

My voice broke from the screaming and I fell to my knees beside the ashes. "Come back, please come back, I'll do anything," I wept. Nagato landed and tried to pull me away, but I shoved him back, too far gone in my own grief to see beyond myself. Even the skies wept with me. When more people started to gather, I turned around and took Naruto from a well-meaning medic, holding the infant tightly as he cried.

"Now you know what it's like to lose everything."

My head snapped up as the growing crowd parted to reveal Madara, looking only slightly worse for wear after being supposedly crushed. I didn't care how he escaped death. No one else said or did anything. They were too stricken by Minato and Kushina's death. A small voice in the back of my head told me they were scared of me too.

"Soon they'll turn against you and then you'll truly have nothing left."

"I could have been there! I could have saved them all!" I screamed at him. "It should never have come to this!"

"They'll hate you for not putting the village first."

My hands were visibly shaking from a combination of the cold rain, exhaustion, grief, and anger. I let Nagato take my nephew from my arms and marched towards Madara. He knew I was going to kill him; he showed up knowing he was going to die. Somehow or another, he was responsible, I knew it.

"Soon you'll know what is feels like to be ostracized and reviled, you'll drag that child down with you, you'll drag everyone you care about down with you."

"Why?" I demanded, grabbing him by the throat and slamming him against the nearest tree. "I did nothing against you, you were supposedly dead long before I was born!"

"Why do you think? You have everything."

"So this is all some pointless one-sided grudge against me? Why?" I nearly begged. Tears mixed with the rain dripping down my face. "You kept me away! I could have made sure it never came to this!"

He just grinned at me.

"What do you want?" I screamed in his face.

"I tell you that and it'll never happened. Enjoy the rest of your pathetic—" He screamed as I slammed my hand into his chest and slowly, in the most excruciating way I knew, ripped out his heart. I forced him to remain alive and conscious as I held his heart in front of his face and crushed it. I wasn't going to let him die from that, instead, I let him feel himself suffocate before I broke his neck.

" _Godforsaken animal,_ " I snarled at his body. He was dead, I was absolutely sure of it, but everything I spent the past eighteen years working towards was still in ruins for no good reason—for no reason that I understood. I tuned on my heel and walked back the way I came.

Kagami, beaten and bloodied until he was almost unrecognizable, stepped in front of me. I looked up and met his eye. I knew he was going to knock me out, I had lost control in front of at least a hundred witnesses. By this point, most shinobi went on a homicidal rampage. After a few seconds, his eyes swirled red, going straight to the Mangekyō. An extremely powerful Genjutsu settled over me; I could feel it, but not even the Kyuubi could have broken it. My legs buckled underneath me as my chakra gave out.

* * *

 _Author's note:_ _I would apologize for what happened in this chapter, but it's been planned from the beginning. An apology now sounds pretty insincere._

 _Editing this was a lot harder than previous chapters and it's hard to strike a balance between editing as much as possible while preserving the voice and skill I had when writing this. One writer practice that's always annoyed me is going back to change or edit a published work. I don't want to do that because I like to see how I've developed as a writer and I don't want to cover up past mistakes. Instead, I would rather let my most recent work speak for itself, even if only a select few number of people read it. (I finished writing this story December 20, 2016 and it's now December 18, 2018, exactly 104 weeks' difference. I didn't plan that and decided against waiting two more days to make it an even two years.) I'm proud of this, not because it's great or it's perfect, but because it was part of the process of becoming a better writer. Writing this story made me better._


	83. Chapter 83

I woke up in an ANBU holding cell, alone. My chakra was sealed away by seals I couldn't break, no matter what I did or how hard I tried. I didn't even know such seals existed. The seals were inked beneath my top layer of skin, not even the Kyuubi could break me out of them.

I wore nothing but a pair of loose shorts and the room was bare except for a ring in the floor for chains. The door was nothing but an outline on the stone wall. The small slat for someone to see inside the room was closed tightly; I could barely have fit my fingers through if I bothered to try. The slight bit of light came from a seal carved in the ceiling. During the day, it would give a little bit of light. During the night, it would give nothing.

Kushina and Minato's deaths hit me for a second time like a physical blow. I rolled over, my back facing the door and curled into a ball. I couldn't move.

Without warning, the light shut off. I fell asleep shortly after that, waking when the light turned back on. Time dragged by as I was left alone in my thoughts; it was not a good place for me to be. More than once I leapt up and pounded on the nearest wall, screaming, begging for it all to end until my knuckles and feet and knees and arms were oozing blood

When the light shut off, I didn't fall asleep. I couldn't. I sat with my back in the corner, my knees curled against my chest and my face hidden from those who may have looked in. I didn't move from that position for the entire night and through the next day. By the next evening, I was so weakened from dehydration that I couldn't move. My lips were cracked and my mouth dry.

The next morning, three unrecognizable ANBU with blank masks entered and dragged me to the center of the room, forcing me to kneel and chaining my wrists and ankles to a metal loop in the floor. Each limb had less than two inches of slack. They force-fed me some water and a little bit of food. I didn't resist.

The left me there and sometime later, Kagami entered, closing the door behind him. He looked almost entirely recovered, though he walked with a bit of a limp.

"The Sandaime took back his hat," I concluded, my voice monotone and my head hanging.

"Correct."

"And since Minato and Kushina are now gone, Nagato has practically vanished from everywhere but ANBU and his home, and Sakumo would never speak out against you under any circumstance, there are no ninja able to protest or have a desire to bring attention to any action you and the Sandaime take against me."

"Again, you are correct." He started to circle me.

"I don't know anything that happened here between the time I was taken by the masked men and when I got back and found the Sanbi ravaging the village."

"I deduced as much."

"You're taking advantage of the fact I have absolutely nothing to lose."

"I am."

"I'll tell you anything you want to know if the rest of my family and friends aren't brought into it."

"You're not in any position to make such a demand."

"I'm not, but you won't involve them anyways."

"I'm not trying to be cruel, Kichiro-kun."

"I know."

"You are aware of the existence of the Mangekyō Sharingan, correct?"

"Correct."

"And you are aware that I possess it, correct?"

"Correct."

"Each user has specific abilities associated with their individual Mangekyō."

"I know."

"Mine is the ability to see and manipulate all memory, including sealed, erased, suppressed, and forgotten memories."

I didn't answer as chills wracked my body.

"The primary side-effect is the victim experiences their thoughts and memories again, all of them, in as vivid detail as they did the first time, it can take up to a week for the visions to fade."

Tears burned in my eyes as Kagami took a knee in front of me.

"You knew something was going to happen, but you didn't tell anyone anything. You don't have a choice now. Anything relevant will be shared with the Hokage and he will decide where the information goes from there. I will not alter your memory except to prevent you from becoming trapped in an endless loop. If you are not deemed as a threat, you will be allowed to return home and your time here will be erased from record. Whenever you're ready, I'll begin."

"I'll answer your gorram questions, please, let me keep my mind to myself," I begged, curling into myself and squeezing my eyes closed.

Kagami didn't react. When I looked up, his Sharingan was already active. "Omoikane," he stated, his hands held in the serpent seal, as if he was praying.

The first thing I registered was pain. It hurt to have Kagami inside my head. I couldn't suppress it and barely registered when he pulled out of my mind.

My throat was sore from screaming and my body ached from thrashing, the chains chafing at my wrists. I felt Kagami's hand on my shoulder, he tried to tell me something, but the words never made it through before the visions started. My time in my original world passed extremely slowly, I suspected it was because Kagami had focused very closely on them, learning and memorizing information he couldn't get anywhere else. When it reached my adult years, I focused on the mild imprints of Kagami's reactions, unsuccessfully trying to block out the memories I tried so hard to forget.

When the visions finally caught up to the present, I was physically and emotionally exhausted. I wasn't in the dehumanizing ANBU prison, but I wasn't lying in the hospital either.

Padded cuffs around my ankles and wrists prevented me from moving much. I partially sat up and looked around the room. I was home in one of the small bedrooms. Outside the door, I could hear several people talking, but I couldn't make out what they were saying.

The door opened, and a woman with ankle-length red hair backed inside.

"Kushina?" I sat up sharply, yanking at the restraints. The conversation outside stopped. When she turned around, I felt like someone punched me in the gut. It wasn't Kushina.

Misaki scrubbed at her eyes as she closed the door behind her. "I'm sorry, Kichiro-kun," she murmured, sitting down beside me and putting her arms around my shoulders and awkwardly hugging me.

I didn't respond.

"Do you need anything? Are you hungry or thirsty?"

"When—when's their funeral?"

"Tomorrow, with everyone else who died during the attack."

"W-will I get to go?"

"The chakra seals will stay on and Jiraiya-sama will escort you."

My heart pounded at the implications of her statement. The only reason Jiraiya would be involved was if it had something to do with the Kyuubi. "W-why am I tied down?"

"Uchiha-sama explained it to your father but he didn't share the reason with the rest of us."

"Uchiha Kagami?"

"No, Uchiha Yori."

I frowned. "I thought he retired after—"

"Everyone's working to rebuild, all shinobi have been called back to duty. I volunteered to stay here with you and the children too young to help."

"I should be out there."

"No, you should be in the hospital. You're sick."

"How would you know?" I scoffed, but immediately regretted it as she pulled away.

"I've spent the last six years working with Tamaki to develop seals to heal minor injuries and run diagnostics, we haven't had a lot of success, but the little we've had is vital. Your father had been trying to help, but his theories are so advanced that we don't really understand. Less than a quarter of the shinobi and civilian doctors survived the Sanbi's rampage. Everyone in the clan able to copy seals has been working nonstop since the attack. Jōnin have been applying the seals."

"I need to be out there helping, please, release the seals."

"I'm sorry, I can't do that."

"Why not?"

"Attempting medical ninjutsu will only increase the stress on your brain and there aren't personnel available to help when you inevitably push yourself too far."

"I'll be fine—"

"Even if I could release the seals, I wouldn't."

"Misaki—"

"What happened?" She demanded. "You were gone four days, not even Nagato heard anything from you, then you're dropped off here, completely unresponsive and you stay like that for eight days! Eight days! Nagato was worried sick about you, and he's never worried like that before and never about you. We were worried you died _again_!"

"Is Naruto okay?"

"Naruto? Kushina named her baby _Naruto_?"

I flinched. "It was Minato's idea, Kushina agreed." My throat tightened again and my eyes burned.

"Typical."

"How is he?"

"He's strong for a newborn and almost always hungry. The seal has no side-effects that we've noticed, he's happy and healthy."

"Who knows that he's a Jinchuuriki?"

Misaki twisted her fingers together. "Pretty much everyone old enough to understand what happened. We're scared of what's going to happen once people start getting back on their feet. For now, we've kept him in here in the nursery, only the family can see him."

"Can you bring him here, please? I want to hold him."

"The children aren't allowed in to see you, yet. I'm only allowed in here because there's no one else here."

"I-I won't hurt them."

"Not intentionally."

I yanked at the cuffs in frustration.

"Calm down, Kichiro-kun, or I'm going to have to sedate you."

"Please release the cuffs, I don't care about the rest of the seals, just the cuffs," I begged her.

"I can't—"

"Please!"

"Stop struggling!" She begged me, trying to push me down on the bed. "They'll hurt you if you don't stop, Kichiro-kun, please!"

"Then maybe I deserve to be hurt!"

"You don't mean that, please tell me you don't mean that!"

I stopped struggling and closed my eyes. "Can you leave, please?"

After a few seconds, Misaki stood up and left, closing the door softly behind her.

I flopped down on the bed as soon as she left.

Several hours later, my father came in.

I feigned sleeping.

"I know you're awake, Kichiro," He said softly.

I opened my eyes as he sat a small meal on my legs. There wasn't much, just some rice and a few veggies in a bowl, but it was probably more than I would be able to stomach.

"I'm not hungry," I told him as I sat up.

"It's been over a week since you've eaten anything solid. We nearly had to put you on an IV."

"I'm not hungry."

"Kichiro—"

"Leave me alone."

"That's the last thing you need."

"Please."

"Sorry, Kichiro."

"Please, just leave me here, I don't deserve any of this."

"So what?" He reached over me and freed my left arm. "This isn't about you, Kichiro, this is about the rest of us."

I don't remember what I screamed at him, but after the first few words I switched into English and no longer had control over myself. I managed to free my other arm before I completely lost control of everything.

The next thing I knew, I was lying on my stomach and my father had both my arms twisted behind me, forcing me prostrate on the bed, my ankles tangled in the chains and blankets. He had a knee in the small of my back and a hand holding my head down.

After a few seconds, I realized he was repeating something and my shouting faded as he continued to chant. It was a lullaby I started singing to Minato and Kushina when they had bad nights after the Suna kidnapping.

" _Dancing bears, painted wings, things I almost remember, and a song someone sings, once upon a December,_ " he didn't quite sing, but the rhythm was there. The words were mangled by his accent, but still understandable.

The English calmed me.

" _Someone holds me safe and warm, horses prance through a silver storm_."

I stilled, listening.

" _Figures dancing gracefully, across my memory_."

When my breathing slowed, he slowly loosened his grip on my arms.

" _Dancing bears, painted wings, things I almost remember, and a song someone sings, once upon a December._ "

He carefully lifted his knee from my back.

" _Someone holds me safe and warm, horses prance through a silver storm_." He repeated it three more times before easing the pressure on the back of my neck.

I stayed in place as he let go.

"Kichiro?" He asked softly.

I put my hands over my head but didn't respond.

"I talked to Kagami a few hours ago, he told me what happened." After a long pause, he continued. "I think it's time for the clan to go back to Uzu."

"The Sandaime won't allow it."

"He will."

"If we leave, other clans will too, the Sandaime can't risk it."

"We're not going to leave right away, but in a few years."

"The Sandaime won't be able to let Naruto leave the village."

"You know full well how the village is going to treat him, the Sandaime does as well. He'll become a recluse if we stay here for long, the village will celebrate our departure in a few years."

"The Sandaime can't lose two Jinchuuriki."

"He's already agreed, Kichiro. If you agree, in three years, we're headed back to Uzu."

I didn't respond to that.

"Think about it."

He freed my ankles and set the food down on the bed then left, locking the door behind him.

I lost everything, I knew that now. If I stayed, the most likely scenario was that the Kyuubi would be extracted and put into someone else. I wasn't going to survive the next week in the village. No one volunteered information on what happened. That could only mean a lot of people I knew must have died. Because of it, the Sandaime would never let me return to my normal work, not for a long time at least.

I should stay. I should accept the help offered. The entire disaster happened because of me. I even compounded the problem with the destruction of the hospital. The village would hate me for it.

If I left, I wouldn't have to face any of it again. I could walk away and never come back. They would follow, sure, but I could evade even the most skilled ANBU.

 _"Remember, if the time should come when you have to make a choice between what is right and what is easy, remember what happened to a boy who was good, and kind, and brave…"_

I stand up, leaving the food behind and placing my hand on the door. Everyone underestimates my fūinjutsu ability because they compare me to my sister and father, but I am a master in my own right. I can't channel chakra, but I helped construct the seals that locked the door. I know exactly how to deactivate them. On the inside of my wrist is a chakra suppression seal. I press it against the seal and two minutes later, it fails. I listen at the door until I hear everyone head into their rooms for bed; it didn't take long.

When the house falls silent, I silently open the door and slide out. I close it, the locking seals reactivating automatically, and creep towards the back of the house and down the stairs. Naruto sleeps peacefully on his back. I carefully pick him up. He doesn't stir as I cradle him.

Chakra steadily rolls off him, rapidly weakening the chakra-binding seals on me. I have to hurry if I want to get out of the village without detection.

I hurry back up the stairs. I climb up onto the windowsill over the kitchen sink, careful not to wake Naruto and doubly careful not to make any noise or touch anything I don't absolutely have to.

Silently, I drop out of the window. When I turn around, I am face-to-face with Naomi, who has my sticks in her hands. I crouch defensively, holding up an arm as if she was going to hit me.

"The south wall has the fewest patrols. If you walk, you'll make it right when the guard changes."

"I love you, Naomi," I murmur and open one arm for her. She lunges forward and wraps her arms around my waist, jostling Naruto, but he doesn't stir.

"I love you too, Kichiro-sensei."

"Don't get into trouble for me, promise?"

"Promise, but don't you want to tell anyone else anything?"

"No, let them think Naruto and I just vanished into thin air."

She nods and pulls back. "You'll come back, right?"

"I'll come back, I promise." I walk away and she returns to her post atop the roof. I have no idea whether I will keep that promise.

Less than an hour later, I am outside the village and the chakra-binding seals fail from the corrosiveness of Naruto's chakra. It doesn't hurt me because his chakra is so similar to mine, but the seals that bound me were held by the chakra of a non-jinchuuriki. By the time anyone else realizes we're gone, I have put a seal on both mine and Naruto's back, which turns our hair black, darkens our skin, and turns our eyes a dull hazel. A small seal on our sternums drains our chakra to the point where we appear to be civilians, storing some of it and channeling the rest into the ground.

The next morning, we are just another displaced family moving to one of the larger towns about ten miles north of Konoha, far enough away to avoid ANBU presence but close enough that no one will look there for us.

I am going to make sure Naruto gets the childhood he deserves because my little sister would have wanted it.

HERE ENDS SPIRIT OF THE TRIAGE

SOTT word count: 355,374

SOTT begun: March 5, 2016

SOTT completed: December 20, 2016

SOTT posting begun: April 13, 2017

SOTT posting completed: December 31, 2018

* * *

 _Author's note: Please don't forget to leave your thoughts in a review!_

 _This is the original ending of Spirit of the Triage. All subsequent chapters were written as a sequel that takes place five years later._

 _I want to say thank you for dedicating your time to reading this story. I also want to say thank you to those who followed and favorited this story. I want to say thank you for those who contributed to this story being included in various communities. Finally, I want to give the biggest thank you of all to those who gave their time and energy to writing reviews, especially to those who reviewed every few chapters. I would put your names here, but I don't want to risk leaving anyone out because there were so many of ya'll. You know who you are. Thank you for your time and energy._


	84. Out of Touch Chapter 1

_**Out of Touch** by emily4498_

 _Sequel to Spirit of the Triage. After fleeing Konoha, Kichiro settles in a small, out-of-the-way village to give his nephew, Naruto, a chance at having a normal childhood, away from the politics and hatred that now surrounds Jinchuuriki in Konoha. For five years, everything goes to plan, but Kichiro can't remain hidden forever. His clan never stopped looking for him. When Kichiro is found, will he believe the promises that everything will be better or will he live on the run from everyone?_

 _Main Characters: Kichiro(OC), Nagato, Ryuunosuke(OC), and Naruto._

 _Genre: Drama/Family_

 _Rating: T_

* * *

"Ji-chan? Can you tell me a story?" A small voice asked behind me.

I kept cutting the small strip of meat into blocks to put in the frying pan.

"Ji-chan?"

"What are you supposed to be doing right now, Naruto?" I responded softly.

"Cleaning my room and finishing my homework," he answered with a grumble.

"Have you finished either?"

"I'm almost done with my homework."

"And your room?"

He mumbled something unintelligible.

"Speak up."

"It's too hard."

"What's too hard?"

"Homework." I barely made out the word.

"Bring it into the kitchen and I'll see if I can help."

"I don't need help!" Naruto puffed up his chest defiantly.

"Then go finish it, little hero."

Naruto scurried away. After a few seconds, he ran back inside and slammed into me, clinging tightly to my pants. I barely avoided reacting to the burst of chakra that came from his room an instant later.

"Naruto? Naruto, what's wrong?" I asked. There was someone, a shinobi, in his room. I barely managed to keep myself from picking Naruto up and fleeing. By the time my knee touched the ground to comfort Naruto, I felt several other chakra signatures closing in on the house. If I had tried to run, I would have been caught. The thought terrified me. It terrified me almost as much as the fact I was completely surrounded, my chakra sealed, and had an untrained little boy to protect.

I spent the past five years completely off the grid. The only contact I had with Konoha was the small handful of ANBU agents who tracked me down for healing and to give me snippets of news. They never, ever approached me while anyone was in the vicinity, not even Naruto. This was someone else.

If I wanted to keep my cover as a civilian, I sure as hell couldn't even try to run.

"There's someone with scary eyes in my room," Naruto choked. I wanted to step back so I could see both the window and the door at the same time, but that wasn't a move that a civilian would make. I Settled for simply focusing on sensing rather than seeing and watching only the door. Naruto let me pick him up and hold him tightly to my chest.

It had taken nearly a year for the Sanbi and Naruto's chakra to come to an agreement. The seals I put on Naruto had nearly quadrupled the time it should have taken. I had regretted that decision until the chakra signature in Naruto's room stepped through the doorway. I knew exactly where the knife I had been using was, but I made myself fumble for it anyways before pointing it at the redheaded man. I didn't hide my fear of the person who walked in. I did hide any recognition in my expression.

Luckily, Naruto had some natural sensing ability and willingly hid behind my legs. Nagato was dressed in the uniform of a Konoha Jōnin. There was a mild Genjutsu hovering around him which made his eyes appear normal. I could see partially through it, but without access to my chakra, I couldn't dismiss it entirely.

Nagato stepped inside the kitchen, looking around, and I took a step back toward the corner of the room. I jumped as someone put their hand on the center of my back. It took all my control not to lash out. Naomi was _good_. I didn't even know she was nearby and even though I knew she was behind me, I could barely sense her.

Several others slowly revealed themselves around the room. As they appeared, I nervously snapped my head between them. Naruto started to pinch my skin beneath my pants so I slowly bent to pick him up and hold him tightly against my chest.

As I watched Nagato carefully and made doubly sure my eyes stayed on him and didn't flicker towards the others gathering around but remaining hidden, I realized he looked remarkably like me. I held Naruto close as he started to prowl around the room, examining the meal I was in the middle of preparing and turning off the burner for the stove.

Naruto hid his face in my neck and wrapped his arms and legs tightly around me. I froze in genuine surprise as the end of a thick stick pressed into my back.

"I-I'll give you anything you w-want, just p-please don't hurt us," I begged, disguising my voice just enough to be less recognizable, but not enough that anyone would think that I was disguising it.

"What are your names?" Nagato demanded, suddenly stalking towards me. Naomi grabbed my arms, holding me in place, her fingers finding my pulse.

"I'm Hiro and this is my boy, Naruto." I shrank away from both of them and to the side as much as Naomi would allow, hoping Nagato bought the lie about my name. Naomi wouldn't rat me out—I hoped. I knew she knew exactly who I was, she had known exactly how to grab me so she could find my pulse right away and avoid actually startling me.

"Where are the boy's parents?"

"I d-don't know."

"What's your surname?"

"I d-don't have one, neither does the boy, p-please, don't hurt us."

"He's telling the truth," Naomi said, releasing me. "He's not who we're looking for."

That was a big fat lie on her part. She felt my pulse jump with each lie.

"Naomi, wipe their memory of us. Everyone else, meet me out back." They all vanished except Naomi.

I turned around.

"Good job hiding in plain sight," she murmured. Her change in demeanor as soon as the others were gone was jarring. Naruto shivered against me. "But you have one year to come back to Konoha before I tattle on you, _Kichiro_."

"Two years, please, I swear I've been planning on coming back in two years, a week after his birthday."

She bit her lip. "Fine, not next year, but the year after, on the seventeenth of October, ten o'clock, sharp, I'll make sure everyone's there. In the meantime, will I be able to find you here?"

"For another few months, yes, but then I'm going to take him around the elemental nations and meet with the other Jinchuuriki."

"The Nibi is back with Kumo, the Yonbi and Gobi are with Iwa, all three have gotten new Jinchuuriki, Nagato and I sealed all three with your seals. The Rokubi and Nanabi are in the wind—"

"I know where they are."

"And the Hachibi is still in Kumo."

I set Naruto down and he automatically clung to my leg as I hugged Naomi. "Stay safe," I murmured in her ear.

"Can you send me a letter when you leave, tell me where you're headed?"

"You know it's going to get intercepted."

"I know, but at least tell me when you're setting off. We miss you. Something is better than nothing."

I just bit my lip, unwilling to promise her anything.

"Love you, 'Chiro-nii."

"Love you too, Naomi. You better get going or Nagato will figure it out. And thank you for covering. Don't get in trouble for me."

"I won't, promise." She smirked and left.

When I was sure they were gone, I picked Naruto up and carried him into the sitting room. We sat on the sofa until he calmed down enough to start asking questions.

"Who were they?"

"Part of our family," I responded. Naruto was old enough to keep his mouth shut and even though he was only five, he deserved to know.

"Why were they here?"

"They were looking for us."

"Why didn't you tell them they found us?"

"Because we would get in lots of trouble if they found us and knew who we are."

"Are they all ninja?"

"Yes, but most of our family isn't."

"Are you a ninja?"

"Not anymore."

"Why did you leave them?"

"How about I tell you the whole story instead?"

Naruto nodded. "Do I still have to do my homework and clean my room first?"

"No, you can do it tomorrow."

He smiled and curled between me and the arm of the sofa, waiting excitedly for the story, terror forgotten.

"A long time ago—"

"How long ago?"

"Twenty-three years ago, your mother and I used to live in an orphanage on an island to the east. We had a giant family. There were so many of us that we filled up a village bigger than this one."

"That's a lot of people."

"It was a lot of people. We didn't even know everyone."

"Did you really cause trouble?"

"A little bit, not as much as you do!" I tickled his belly until he started giggling.

"S-stop! What happened next?"

I stopped tickling him and put an arm around his shoulders. "But then, something very bad happened. Some ninja got really scared of our family."

"Why?"

"Because we were very strong and very big. They came in and tried to kill us and they succeeded. They killed almost the entire family."

Tears glistened in Naruto's eyes.

"A group of kids escaped with me and your mother, most of them were the same age as you are now. We were the only people on the island to live. A group of people who weren't on the island lived too, but that was all. Then, all of us, as kids, made it to Konoha. Your mother and I became ninja—"

"Were you strong?"

"Your mother, my little sister, was the strongest woman I've ever known. Shortly after we arrived in Konoha, she met your father. The two of them were inseparable. They were the best of friends."

"Like we are?"

"Like we are."

"You're my bestest friend, Ji-chan."

"You're my bestest friend too, Ruto-chan."

"I'm too old for 'chan'!"

"You'll never be too old."

Naruto whined pitifully.

"Are you done with the story?"

"No!"

"Well, when we made it to Konoha, we didn't know anyone else survived, but on one of my missions, I found three of our family members. The man who came, he was younger than you when I found him and his parents. The lady is his younger sister, who was born after I brought their parents to Konoha. Over time, a few other family members found their way to us. We started to rebuild our clan in Konoha. Some of us became ninja, most stayed civilian. Your parents got married. They were two of the strongest ninja in the village, but then, something really bad happened and Konoha was destroyed the night you were born. Both of your parents and a lot of other people died."

"It wasn't my fault, was it?" He asked, worried.

"No, it wasn't your fault, it was mine."

Naruto looked up at me, confused. "But Ji-chan, you would never hurt anybody! Not even when they're mean to you!"

"Someone wanted to hurt me really bad so they attacked the village and made sure everyone would blame me for it because I couldn't protect everyone."

"But you're always nice! How could anyone be that mean to you?"

"I don't know, but some people are and there isn't always something anyone can do about it. It was my fault because I never told anyone about the real danger."

"The bad person is dead, right?"

"Yes, he's dead."

"Why did you leave Konoha?"

"Because the village would have blamed me for it and I was scared. If they blamed me, they would blame you as well and I couldn't allow that, so as soon as I could, I stole you and ran away."

"But we're not very far from Konoha!"

"No, we're not, because of that, it took them this long to find us. I couldn't just abandon the village, so I stayed close, just in case another big attack happened, I would be close enough to protect them. I failed the first time, I'm not going to fail again."

"Are they still mad at us?"

"I don't know, I haven't been back. If I go back, then they'll figure out where we are for sure and I might never see you again."

"But you told the girl we would be going back!"

"Because we are."

"But I don't want to go somewhere everyone hates me!"

"Once they see what kind of boy you are, they won't hate you."

"But you'll stay with me, right?"

"I don't think so, Naruto. Once we get there, it will be a long time before I see you again."

"I don't want to be separated from you!"

"I'm sorry, Naruto. I did something very bad by taking you away and I'll have to pay for that."

"No! I don't want to go back if it means I'll never see you!" Naruto leapt forward and clung tightly to my neck. I rubbed circles in his back until he calmed down.

"It's our home, Naruto, we have to go back."

"But I don't want to! This is my home! You're my family, not the scary people!"

"They're not scary once you get to know them. Nagato, the man, I taught him everything he knows. The woman who stayed, I started teaching her, but I didn't get to finish."

"I don't care. I won't go anywhere."

"Naruto—"

He pushed himself off me and marched into his room. I sighed and flopped back on the sofa. After a few seconds, someone knocked on the door. I stood up and went to answer it. It was the neighbor and his wife. The man was a Konoha shinobi, but was forced into retirement when his chakra network was severely damaged. They were the only people to know I was a shinobi, the only people close enough and with the knowledge to figure it out. I suspected they knew who Nagato and I were, but they never said anything.

"Can I help you?" I asked them, my voice low.

"Is everything alright?" The woman asked. "I heard your nephew scream, and several hours ago, a girl came around asking if anyone had seen you, the real you, with your original coloring. We told her what the rest of the village probably did, that you and your nephew arrived here five years ago, but didn't fit the rest of the description." They definitely knew who I was.

"A team of shinobi came looking, but I convinced them I was a civilian. There's nothing to worry about, they just startled Naruto when they appeared inside."

"Why don't you and Naruto spend the night at our house anyways, just in case they weren't really convinced."

"No, thank you. I have seals up that prevent us from leaving this house unconscious or unwilling, as well as a whole host of defensive seals, nothing will happen."

"You told the boy the truth, didn't you," the man asked sharply.

"You know full well I can't lie to Naruto."

The woman sighed. "The boy is going to be the death of you."

"It's my fault his parents are dead, I didn't get there soon enough."

The man's expression hardened. "If you keep blaming yourself then the boy is going to be without an uncle as well." He turned on his heel and marched home.

"He's right, you know," the woman murmured before following.

I closed the door. When I turned around, Naruto was standing outside his room, hugging a small stuffed doll dressed in a Chuunin uniform. It had blond hair and blue eyes, a facsimile of his father. I told Naruto plenty of stories about famous ninja, and unsurprisingly, his favorite was his father. He also had a doll of his mother, the Sandaime, the White Fang, Jiraiya, Tsunade, and several famous Uchiha. The woman who just left made them for the village children, at least, she made them for ones with shinobi potential.

It was indoctrination at its finest. Naruto hadn't decided yet whether he wanted to be a shinobi, but if his parentage was ever revealed, he would have to be.

His lip trembled. After a few seconds re raced forward, dropping the doll, and leapt towards me. I caught him easily, holding him tightly as he bawled into my shoulder.

"It's okay, Ruto-chan, it's okay. Everything is going to be fine, I promise."

He ended up crying himself to sleep. One-handed, I cleaned up the ingredients for what I was planning on making for dinner. We wouldn't be eating that evening.

(-_-)

The next morning, I dropped Naruto off at school and told his teacher to let him have an extra day to do his homework because of events the previous night.

I worked for a local tea farmer, tedious, unforgiving work, but the farmer was fair and reliable in his pay. To pay for Naruto's schooling, I gathered herbs and other pharmaceuticals for the local doctor, as well as instructions on how to use them. Naruto and I made the trips into the forest over the weekends. He loved camping, gathering and catching our own food, and hunting down herbs. I had taken him out every weekend since he was old enough to help.

Very rarely, we took another one of Naruto friends in the village along, but after the first few times, Naruto started to resent it when I had to keep a closer eye on his much less-experienced friend instead of him. He stopped inviting friends shortly after.

It was no secret that I provided a lot of the doctor's supplies, though I had sworn the man to secrecy on the fact that I was the one steadily improving his education.

The village had barely a thousand people, which was rather large for being so close to Konoha. There was a small market, and if it wasn't for me insisting on it, the village wouldn't have had a school. I didn't have much pull in the village, but I had enough to do that much.

Naruto and I liked the people, though Naruto often complained that nothing exciting ever happened in the quiet town.

To be perfectly honest, if it wasn't for Naruto, the town would be extremely nondescript. Especially since it didn't even have a proper name. 'Sector Three' was what Konoha designated the area the village was built on, and they never changed the name.

When I came to pick Naruto up from school, I found him sitting high in one of the trees, the teacher begging him to come down. Unfortunately, he was too high up for an inexperienced civilian to safely climb, as well as too far up to hear them properly. A small crowd had gathered, curious on the outcome. He was extremely visible in the tree, especially since I always sent him to school in a brightly-colored jacket.

"What happened?" I asked the teacher, who breathed a sigh of relief when she spotted me.

"Thank kami you're here, he climbed up there during recess and I left him up there thinking he'd come down and join the class, but he hasn't. He's going to fall, and it's going to be my fault because I didn't stop him from—"

"Calm down, he climbs trees like this all the time, I'll go up and talk to him. Go on home, everything is going to be fine," I assured her. She nodded, but didn't move. I took a running start and leapt up to one of the lower branches.

It would have been much easier to use chakra, but I really didn't want to draw attention to myself. I made sure to climb entirely under my own power. I had a feeling Nagato was watching. Sure enough, as I skimmed the crowd, I saw a knot of redheads at the very back. The other villagers had given them a generous amount of space.

Naruto climbed a bit higher than I could safely reach without strengthening the wood. If I used chakra, Nagato would know for sure it was me, so I went as high as I could and sat down.

"It's nice up here," I said, holding on to the trunk of the tree and leaning out so I could see the crowd through the leaves. Naruto didn't answer. "You know, it wasn't very nice of you to climb up here and scare Aina-sensei like that."

Naruto scowled and flopped back precariously. He may have been five, but he was more coordinated and balanced than many children twice his age, with a little practice.

"I thought the ninja would come and 'rescue' me like the heroes in your stories."

"They were waiting for you to fall to rescue you, probably hoping you would be seriously hurt so they can prove who I am."

"If they knew you before I was born, how do they not know you now?"

"Because I put seals on us that changes our hair, skin, and eye colors. If I put on a little bit of a show for them, along with a bit of help from Naomi to get it past them, they're convinced."

"What color is my hair really?"

"Blond. You have blue eyes, and your skin is much lighter."

"What about you?"

"Red hair and green eyes. My skin is the same color as theirs."

"Can you show me?"

"When we get home."

There was a short silence. "I'm ready to come down now," Naruto murmured.

"Do you want me to carry you?"

Naruto shook his head and started to scurry down. I felt it activate at the last second, a seal that threw off Naruto's sense of balance. Before I could grab him, his foot slipped and he was falling.

* * *

 _Author's note: Here is the first chapter of the sequel, for those who are interested. Enjoy!_


	85. OOT Chapter 2

I knew the fall wouldn't kill him if I managed to get him treatment by a medic-nin right away, but I knew Naomi would never allow one of us to get hurt. I managed to catch her eye and she raced forward before Nagato could stop her, catching Naruto several feet above the ground.

I took far more risks than I should have when I scurried down the tree, but I had to get to Naruto before Nagato did. I managed to get down at a very dangerous civilian pace, garnering several injuries as well as a possibly broken wrist along the way, but I pulled Naruto out of Naomi's grip and hugged him tightly.

"Thank you, kunoichi-sama," I bowed low, holding Naruto tight against my chest. "If you ever need anything, please don't hesitate to ask and I will do what I can."

She choked on her response when she saw my rapidly swelling wrist.

Nagato came up and stepped between us. I looked up at him in confusion, but that was a mistake. I met his Rinnegan full-force. He started to sift through my mind. A civilian wouldn't have realized what he was doing, but I'd had enough people invading my thoughts that I knew exactly what it felt like.

I knew it was weak and selfish of me, but I couldn't handle anyone in my head without my permission, even if there was nothing for Nagato to find. I released both mine and Naruto's chakra at once, the combined amount blowing everyone within ten feet of me off their feet. Nagato lost control of the jutsu he was using and he recoiled from my mind. My cover was blown.

Naomi recovered before Nagato and distracted him just enough for me to leap away and flee into the trees.

"Be silent," I hissed into Naruto's ear. He bit down on my shirt as I pressed his head against my shoulder so he wouldn't be dangerously shaken and took off.

With Naruto weighing me down, I needed every advantage I could get. I strung enough Genjutsu behind us that only Nagato could have followed, the girls would have to be broken out of them one at a time. Unsurprisingly, Nagato was the only one who pursued because he knew I would never actually hurt them. Natsuki and Noriko circled around to try and cut me off. I veered towards Natsuki. The girl was built for power, not speed. I wasn't a part of any of Noriko's training, so I had only a vague idea what she was good at. I was better off taking my chances with Natsuki, even though she was much more experienced. As well as I knew their tactics, they knew mine just as well, if not better. Fortunately, they didn't know the area anywhere near as well as I did. Unfortunately, I didn't count on them having brought two more Uzumaki with them: my father and Kaito, Keiko's oldest son.

I nearly ran directly into my father, and as I dodged, Kaito's trap nearly caught me, even though it was barely sophisticated enough to catch a large animal. I flung myself backwards, landing and definitely breaking my wrist. As I hit the ground, the bone pierced my skin. I cried out in pain, not bothering to keep silent. They already knew exactly where I was, but the cry would make them ease up on their next attack. Nagato and the two girls caught up. I was surrounded.

"It's alright, Naruto, everything's going to be okay. They're not going to hurt us, I promise." I tugged my shirt out of his mouth, and without anything to bite down on, he started crying. Whatever they were planning on doing next, they second-guessed themselves, giving me just enough time to perform the Hiraishin to get us over a mile away, on the other side of the village and then clamp my hand over Naruto's mouth and flee as fast as I could.

I paid no heed to where I was going, my only goal was to get as far away as possible. Naruto spent enough time in the woods with me that it wouldn't bother him to rough it for a few weeks. At sunset, I stopped and had Naruto gather food for us while I fixed the compound fracture in my arm and made a makeshift set for sealing our chakra again, though not nearly as tightly. Naruto and I finished at about the same time. I deactivated the seal altering his appearance and changed it to a boy with light brown hair and dark blue eyes.

He sat in front of me, perfectly still as I used my blood for the sealing. Naruto was too young to remember when I infected him with seal sickness, which was a risky decision on my part, but the combination of the Sanbi and my medical skills lessened the risk and the payoff—the ability to use stronger and longer-lasting seals—was certainly worth it. I would still have to replace the seals as soon as I managed to get the proper supplies but binding our chakra down to civilian levels was the top priority. I would be able to get the proper supplies as soon as I oriented myself at the next town.

Nagato wouldn't know it until it was too late, but when looking into my mind, he opened up his own and I gleaned his access codes. To my surprise, they hadn't changed since I left. Any shinobi supply station was now open to me, for a limited time at least.

"Ji-chan?" Naruto whispered.

"What is it?" I murmured as I activated the seals I drew.

He didn't answer, instead turning around and watching me draw them on my forearms.

"Naruto?" I asked when I finished.

"Iwanttolearntobeashinobi." He said, too quickly and too quietly for me to be sure what I heard.

"Pardon?"

"I want—I want to—I want to learn to be a shinobi," he stammered out, then jerked back as if I was going to explode at him.

I took a deep breath and waited for him to calm down. "Why?" I asked.

Naruto looked at me, confused.

"Why do you want to be a shinobi?"

"What does that have to do with anything?" He demanded.

"If you want to be a shinobi, we can go back to Konoha—"

"No!" He cried out, louder than he intended. "I want you to teach me, Ji-chan!" He continued, much quieter.

"I'm not going to teach an idealistic sycophant."

He frowned, trying to figure out the words. "What does that mean?" He finally asked.

"It means someone who just follows someone else without thinking about it for themselves. Tell me why you want to be a shinobi and I'll consider teaching you."

"The man with the scary eyes was being a bully!"

"Naruto—"

"I don't like bullies and I want to stop them all so they can never hurt you!"

"Naruto—"

"I want to be the strongest person in the whole world so no one will ever hurt you again!"

"Then give up right now," I snapped at him.

"Ji-chan?"

"You heard me. Give up."

"Ji-chan? Why?"

I knelt down in front of Naruto and took his hands in mine, then met his eye. "When I started training to be a shinobi, I only had one reason for it: to protect your parents, to make sure they didn't die in some disaster, to die in their place if I had to. I couldn't do it, Naruto. First, your mother was kidnapped by Kumo, who wanted to seal a monster inside of her. I barely got there in time, and even then, we all almost died. Next, both your mother and father were kidnapped and _tortured_ by Suna, but I couldn't get there in time. They were taken and tortured because I was strong. We fought in two wars and I don't even know half of what happened to them there, they took most of it to their graves. Then when you were born, I wasn't strong enough, I wasn't fast enough, I wasn't good enough to protect your parents and they _died_ _right in front of me_."

"But I'm going to be stronger—"

"No! If you want to be a shinobi, you have to be a shinobi just like all the others. You'll have to run missions, fight in wars, and serve your Kage before everything else. You can't be everywhere, Naruto, that's impossible, understand? There is no way for you or anyone to be with and protect someone all the time."

"I figure out a way—"

"If that's going to be your reasoning, I'll take you back to Konoha and your grandfather or one of my students can train you, hell, you can go to the Academy for all I care."

"No! Ji-chan, please!" Naruto lunged at me. I turned out of the way and he crashed to the ground. I knelt beside him and set him back on his feet, keeping him at arm's length.

"I want you to think about why you want to be a shinobi. We're going to travel around and meet some people. Suna is first on the list, there's someone your age I want you to meet. It'll take us two weeks to get there. If you can give me an answer, a real answer, before we get there, I'll start training you until we go back to Konoha. If you chose not to be a shinobi, I'll abandon the trip right then and we'll settle down in another town for a few years, before going home. Until you think of an answer, I'm not going to train you, but in about two years, you can learn in Konoha. Deal?" I held out a hand to him.

He tentatively took it. "Okay."

It was definitely going to be a summer Naruto would never forget.

(-_-)

I ran to Suna with Naruto clinging to my front. The silence was strange. For two weeks, he barely said a word, aside for the occasional question and to tell me he was tired or hungry. I didn't like the silence, but the fact that he was taking the deal seriously made me bear it. When we were close enough to Suna that we risked detection if I continued to run at a shinobi pace, albeit a rather slow shinobi pace, I set Naruto on his feet and we started to walk towards the village. I tightened our chakra seals, which I had reapplied after gathering supplies from a waystation with Nagato's ID, to make us appear properly exhausted from a trip through the desert and we set off towards Suna.

Naruto walked for the rest of the day, though he fell asleep before I finished making us dinner, and barely woke up to eat and drink.

I found the road most civilians took to reach Suna, and we had been travelling with other civilians for some time, though, unlike Konoha, no one really talked to each other.

The next few days, I let him walk until he started stumbling, but most of the time, he lasted the entire day. He had too much physical energy to get tired out from walking and his entire mind was focused on the dilemma I gave him. When we were three days outside the village, Naruto stopped suddenly.

"I have an answer for you, Ji-chan."

I breathed a loud sigh of relief. "Thank goodness, the silence was starting to make me go crazy!"

Naruto giggled and held up his arms to me. I picked him up and set him on my hip. He was small for being five-and-a-half, even though I made doubly sure he ate and slept well. I remembered Kushina and I were a small for our age, but I had always thought it was because we lived as orphans and missed more meals that we should have, as well as rarely got a full night's sleep, for various reasons.

"I want to be able to stop bad things from happening," Naruto declared, but not quite loud enough for the people in front of, and behind us on the road into Suna could hear. The quiet wasn't intentional though, it was more resolve than I had ever heard from him. "I want everyone to feel safe and happy around me, like I feel when I'm with you."

"I'm proud of you, Ruto-chan." I ruffled his hair and pulled him into a hug.

He smiled and giggled, but it quickly cut off. "That's not all." He pulled back and fidgeted with the front of my shirt, fishing out the necklace I wore with my dog tags and the physical key to the Uzumaki house. I let him play with it, his hands stayed underneath my scarf so no one could see what he fidgeted with. "I don't just want to be strong enough, I want to be the strongest, I want to be the goodest shinobi ever so no one will get hurt when I'm around. I know I can't do anything when I'm not there, and I can't always be there, so I want to show people that being good makes them stronger and being good makes them all happier and if everyone tries to be good they it'll be like I'm still there, right?"

"That's the best reason for being a shinobi that I've ever heard, I'm proud of you, Naruto. Do you think you're ready to start on that goal?" If anyone could do that, it was him.

He exploded into a cheer that turned everyone's heads. It was a good thing Naruto listened to me, otherwise it would have been a long time before I would have been able to get him back under control. He had so much energy stored up and the sudden release of it made it seem like he was floating at times. He started bouncing around and engaging the people on the road in conversation. Even with his blond hair and blue eyes hidden, he was a bundle of sunshine, a glass of cool water on a hot day. By the end of the afternoon, most of the people travelling in the vicinity had tightened their ranks and were chatting amicably, all because of one mini-miracle worker.

The next day before we reached the gates of Suna was much more pleasant than the ones before.

I didn't have papers, but Naruto was too small and young to be a shinobi, and no village would risk taking a child like him with them for infiltration, even if it did solidify their cover. The Chuunin at the gate didn't even ask for my papers as he waved me through. It was just after the hottest part of the day when we arrived, so Naruto and I started by wandering around the village. The houses looked like they were made of sand, but when I touched them, it was solid stone.

I made sure to keep a firm grip on Naruto's hand, as well as keep an eye out for a temporary job. I was hoping to stay for a few weeks before moving on and I didn't have enough money to rent lodging for that long.

We meandered through the village, catching baskets. Naruto was exceptionally proud of himself when he took the initiative to offer help to a woman carrying her food for the day in one arm and a baby in the other. I ended up having to carry the basket because it was too heavy for Naruto, but he carried a smaller bag of fruit. The woman handed us a few coins when we reached her home and set the goods on her doorstep. I intended to let Naruto spend them how he wanted, but as soon as the woman's door closed, he asked to be carried and promptly fell asleep on top of me. It was amazing what a child could do.

I bought a room for us at the cheapest hotel I could find and laid Naruto on the bed. He would be ravenous in the morning. I put a tracking seal and Hiraishin seal on Naruto as he slept, as well as a basic defensive seal around the room, then left on my real reason for visiting Suna: to track down Gaara.

Unfortunately, it was pathetically easy. Gaara sat atop the building beside one of the playgrounds. I couldn't see more than a small, dark silhouette, but I could feel the Bijū sealed inside of him.

I walked up and stood underneath him. "Hey, kiddo, how'd you get up there?" I asked curiously.

He twitched, but I couldn't see his expression. Sand swirled around me. I froze with indecision and the moment cost me. The sand wrapped around my torso, pinning my arms to my sides and lifting me up so I was face-to-face with the five-year-old. I held very still, frozen with horror as I noticed the kanji etched onto his forehead. It was still bleeding.

The sand tightened.

"Who are you?" He rasped. "No, you're scared of me, you hate me just like everyone else."

"Sorry kid, if you could hurt me, which you can't, then I might consider getting a healthy dose of fear. I don't hate people I just met, kiddo, especially not in places I just got to."

He dropped me. I was not expecting that response and didn't even manage to catch myself. I even yelped on the way down. I landed flat on my back, all the air leaving my body in one gasp and probably getting a concussion at the same time. Gaara jumped down after me, so I slowly pushed myself upright, gasping for air.

"You definitely put a dent in my ego right there, kiddo. What's your name?" I wheezed.

"Gaara."

"It's nice to meet you, Gaara-kun." I held out a hand to him, but he didn't take it.

"Mother is scared of you."

"I've never met your mother, Gaara-kun."

"She says you have. In Konoha. She says two little bugs locked her away while you pinned her down."

"The Ichibi isn't your mother," I responded.

"If you just got here, how do you know about Mother?" He asked dully.

I sighed and lifted my shirt to show him the seal on my stomach.

"Does your Mother talk to you too?"

"The creature inside of me, the creature inside of you is not either of our mothers, Gaara-kun. My mother died when I was really little, I'm guessing yours did too."

"Yashamaru hated me because I killed her."

I shifted so my back was against the wall and patted the ground beside me. Gaara came over to stand next to me, just out of my reach. "I know more than a little about all the people like us. I probably know more about your history than you do, so I know you were born premature, that means you were born before you were supposed to. Now tell me, how can a baby, smaller than your head, kill a full-grown kunoichi?"

"A baby with Mo—a monster inside of him could."

"How did the monster get inside the baby?"

For the first time, he showed a little bit of emotion. It was only a bit of confusion, but it was better than the dead look he had been giving me.

"Someone else put the monster inside the baby, Gaara-kun. Just like someone put a monster inside of me, and someone else put a monster inside of my nephew." I immediately regretted the last phrase, but I couldn't take it back. Fortunately, it got a reaction out of him.

"There are more like us?"

"There are nine total."

Gaara's eyes widened.

"That's all for tonight, Gaara-kun, I have to get back to my nephew. I'll see you again in a few days, okay? You think about what I said and I'll see you again, promise?"

He nodded.

"A promise isn't a promise unless its spoken."

"I-I promise."

I stood up and walked away. I probably already overloaded the kid, I didn't want to make it even worse.

"Wait!" Gaara called after me.

I stopped and looked over my shoulder. He ran up to me and grabbed my wrist. I didn't move as he grabbed my pantleg as well, hanging off me. We were underneath a small lamp and I double-checked to make sure no one was watching.

"W-where can I find you?"

I took a knee in front of him and looked him in the eye. "I'll find you, promise."

"Your eyes are different."

"I have to go, Gaara-kun."

"No!" His hand tightened around my wrist, his sand wrapping around it as well to hold me in place. "Your eyes are different!"

"I don't know what that means, Gaara-kun."

"The eyes! The eyes!" He screeched.

The joys of five-year-olds. I could feel Suna's black ops popping up around us. I was trapped. Unless I wanted to reveal myself as a shinobi, I had to let it play out. Unfortunately, if they decided to try and pull the supposedly hapless civilian out of harm's way it would set Gaara off. Naruto was on the other side of the block, I couldn't risk Gaara's rampage.

Instead of trying to pull away, I took Gaara's hands, ignoring how his hands were gripping mine painfully tight, his sand rubbing away the top layer of skin. I could use this to start changing the shinobi's perspective of him. It was a long shot, but I really didn't want to upset Suna by tearing away their Jinchuuriki. I may not have been the most up-to-date on the politics, but last I heard, almost anything could spark another war. Minato's death had destabilized the entire shinobi world, along with Kushina's death and my disappearance with Naruto, there was nothing left tying the countries together, be it fear or respect, or charisma, or anything really. I needed to diffuse the situation, fast.

"Okay, Gaara-kun, tell me about the eyes."

"Not the eyes! Your eyes!"

"Okay, my eyes. What about my eyes?"

"They're different!"

"Different, okay, how are they different?" The Kazekage appeared in front of me, but I was careful not to let my gaze waver from Gaara's lest he realize we were surrounded.

"They—they—I don't know!" He burst into tears and rubbed his eyes with the back of his hand, not letting go of my hands.

"It's okay, it's okay, why don't we start simple? Is it a good different or a bad different?"

"Good," he answered firmly.

"Good, good, does it make you feel happy?"

"What's happy?"

I barely stopped myself from reacting. Gaara would have taken it the wrong way. "Happy makes you want to smile."

"It's not happy, but after I feel happy."

Well that was as clear as mud. "Can you describe it?"

Gaara glanced around and luckily, he was looking at the ground, not at the rooftops where everyone was gathered. His eyes landed on the mantle I wore around my shoulders, similar to him. He switched his hands in mine and ducked underneath the mantle, wrapping my arms around him. I barely stopped myself from lurching away from the unexpected contact. "Like this," he said. "Like even though I know all the other eyes are out there, they can't hurt me if I don't want them to."

"That's safe, Gaara-kun, you feel safe. Anything else?"

"The monster is quiet when you're around, I don't want you to go."

A mantra of curse words started running through my head. It was only a matter of time before they figured out who I was after that. Naruto would be fine if I vanished for a few days, he was smart enough and I left everything we had with him, but I wanted the trip to Suna to last much longer than it now would.

"Gaara-kun, I need you to listen to me and remain very, very calm, okay?" I put my hands firmly on his shoulders and pushed him back a step so I could look into his eye. "I came into this village under a disguise so I could talk to you for a little bit, but I stayed too long and now there are a lot of people watching us." Gaara's lip trembled and he looked around frantically, seeing the people surrounding us. "Gaara-kun, look at me, please." I waited until he met my eye again. "I'm going to drop the disguise now, but I don't want you to look at what everyone else thinks, I want you to stay focused on me, okay?"

Gaara nodded. I slowly touched the seal altering my appearance and released it. I didn't look at their reactions, I just kept my eyes on Gaara so he didn't start a rampage. Suna hated me, sure, but they knew exactly what I was capable of and they knew I now had control over their Jinchuuriki.

"Good job, Gaara-kun, can you do another thing for me?"

He nodded tentatively.

"I have something to say to the monster inside you, and I want you to pass this message along, okay?"

He nodded again.

"Tell him that if he wants the seal to stay how it is, he's going to stop talking to you, he's going to stop trying to escape, and he's going to stop rampaging through this village, okay?"

There was a pause. "He—he's not listening."

"That's okay. I want you to close your eyes and cover your ears. Don't listen to anything that happens next, okay?"

"Why?"

"Because I'm going to have to go away for a bit, and that way, you don't have to see or hear me go."

"Can I come with you?"

"Yes, you may, son," the Yondaime Kazekage stepped up. I stood and faced him, Gaara between us. My entire body was rigid and I took a step back, trying not to appear threatening.

With this twist, I had no idea what his game was.

"You have quite the talented disciple, Uzumaki-san," he said. I stiffened. There was no way for him to know about Naruto, even if he did figure out I had the boy with me, there was no way they could get past the seals without alerting me.

To my horror, a kunoichi carrying a bundle Naruto's size stepped forward just enough so I could see the sleeping child. I checked the bundle's chakra signature and it was certainly Naruto.

"This is the deal. I'm fully aware Gaara's seal is an appalling piece of work. I also know that you have the ability to fix it and care very much for the nobody brat you brought with you. I also know that Konoha has a pretty coin on your head and you are at my mercy. For some reason, you don't want to return to Konoha, but I also know that you don't want to stay here."

The stream of curses running through my head intensified. At the height of my fūinjutsu prowess, there was only a small chance that I could accomplish what he wanted me to do. I was more than a decade out of practice.

"You're going to fix the seal so Gaara can be used. If you disagree, I will have the boy tortured until you agree. If you try to double-cross me or fail in creating a functional seal, I will send you and the boy back to Konoha."

I'd rather be in Konoha than stuck in Suna—at least in Konoha they would take care of Naruto. I started trying to figure out a way to fail the task without harming Gaara, but the Kazekage's next statement put an end to it.

"I wonder how Konoha will welcome you when you appear carrying the body of a child."

* * *

 _Author's note: It's June 7th, Kichiro's birthday!_

 _A reviewer asked about the update schedule: there is no schedule. I'm not in a position where I can make a promise to update with any pre-determined frequency. I will post when I'm able, but I have personal problems that make updating with any regularity difficult._

 _Another reviewer asked for a summary of what happened before the break. I will try to put one up sometime soon. For the time being, my best advice would be to reread or ask a friend._

 _Don't forget to leave a review with your thoughts!_


End file.
